North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust

North Dakota Unclaimed Property – Trusts for Unlocatable Mineral Owners

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1 identifies a special category of North Dakota unclaimed property which results from the judicial creation of trusts for the benefit of North Dakota mineral rights owners:

• who cannot be located,
• but whose consent is required with respect to certain matters,

(hereinafter, the “Unlocatable Owners”).

The deemed consent of Unlocatable Owners may be required in order to execute and deliver:

• a North Dakota oil, gas, or other mineral lease – or a ratification thereof,
• a North Dakota division order, or
• any related document or instrument.

Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Petition

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-01 identifies that a person owning a mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying a tract of land:

• may petition the district court of the county in which the tract or a portion of the tract is located,
• to declare a trust in favor of other persons also owning or claiming an interest in the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying the tract,

(hereinafter, a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust), if the place of residence, and present whereabouts, of the other persons owning or claiming an interest in the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying the tract,

• are unknown, and
• cannot reasonably be ascertained.

Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Prerequisites

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-01 identifies the prerequisites with respect to any petition for a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust, by providing in part as follows:

In requesting the appointment of a trustee, the petitioner must show

• that a diligent but unsuccessful effort to locate the absent owner or claimant has been made and
• that appointment of a trustee will be in the best interest of all owners of an interest in the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest.

Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Trustees

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-01 identifies:

• the trustees who will be authorized to administer a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust, and
• the powers of such trustees,

by providing in part as follows:

After determining that these conditions have been met, the court:

• shall appoint the county treasurer as trustee and
• shall authorize the county treasurer to execute and deliver an oil, gas, or other mineral lease, a ratification, a division order, or any other related document or instrument on the terms and the conditions as the court may approve.

Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Petitioner Liability

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-02 identifies that a person owning a mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying a tract of land who creates a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust shall have no further liability to the Unlocatable Owners, by providing as follows:

If a trust in favor of unlocatable owners or claimants of an interest the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest

• has been created and
• all bonuses, rental payments, royalties, and other income due to the unlocatable owners being or have been paid to the trustee,

the person petitioning for creation of the trust is not liable for further claims by unlocatable owners for

• bonuses,
• rental payments,
• royalties, and other
• income produced after the creation of the trust.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Income

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies that all bonuses, rental payments, royalties, and other income must be paid to the trustee of a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust until:

• the trust is terminated, and
• notice of its termination is given to all interested parties.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Distributions

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies that the trustee of a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust shall distribute all funds held in the trust to the person(s) entitled to such funds as directed by the order of the North Dakota district court.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Duration

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies the duration of a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust, by providing in part as follows:

A trust in favor of unlocatable owners must be kept in force until the unlocatable owners of the mineral interests in question

• have successfully claimed their share of the funds held in trust and
• have filed the notice as provided in section 38-13.1-04.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Lapse of Mineral Rights

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies that the creation of a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust will not – by itself – prevent the owner of the surface rights from reacquiring ownership of the mineral rights pursuant to North Dakota’s Abandoned Mineral Rights Act, by providing in part as follows:

The creation of a trust in favor of unlocatable owners does not affect the right of a surface owner who succeeds to ownership of a mineral interest upon its lapse under chapter 38-18.1.

A person who succeeds to ownership under chapter 38-18.1 owns

• the mineral interest and
• the proceeds from the mineral interest from the date of succession.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Special Taxation 

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies that a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust will be subject to a special – and significant – tax surcharge, by providing in part as follows:

Upon receipt, fifty percent of the moneys paid to the trustee must be credited to the general fund of the county in which the mineral interest is located to defray the costs of administration.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Unclaimed Property Act 

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-03 identifies that a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust will be subject to the provisions of North Dakota’s version of the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act – which can be found at N.D.C.C. Section 47-30.1 – by providing in part as follows:

Funds held in trust are subject to the laws governing abandoned property as provided in chapter 47-30.1.

Therefore, three years after the creation of an North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust, any trust assets must be turned over to either:

• the North Dakota State Treasurer, or
• the appropriate administrative authority in another state properly entitled to such funds.

Until the transfer of the trust assets to:

• the North Dakota State Treasurer, or
• the appropriate administrative authority in another state properly entitled to such funds

the existence of a North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust can be determined by contacting the County Treasurer in the North Dakota County in which the mineral interest is located.

North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust – Notice Filing

N.D.C.C. Chapter 38-13.1-04 identifies that any of the Unlocatable Owners owning a mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying a tract of land may file a notice with the local North Dakota County Recorder’s office, which identifies:

• the person, and
• the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interests claimed by the person,

by providing as follows:

A person claiming an interest in the mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest underlying a tract of land that is the subject of a trust proceeding under section 38-13.1-01

N.D.C.C. 38-13.1-01.

Trusts for unlocatable mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest owners – Creation.

may record with the recorder of each county in which the land is located

a notice containing the person’s address and a description of the person’s mineral, leasehold, or royalty interest.

Recording the notice creates a rebuttable presumption that the person owns the interest claimed.

Conclusion – North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust

If you need assistance with respect to any North Dakota Unlocatable Mineral Owner Trust, contact North Dakota attorney Gary C. Dahle, at 763-780-8390, or gary@dahlelaw.com.

Whether you reside in North Dakota, California, Minnesota, or any other state, if you had a relative who died owning mineral rights in North Dakota which have not yet been properly settled, contact Minnesota and North Dakota attorney Gary C. Dahle, at 763-780-8390, or gary@dahlelaw.com.

Even though Minnesota and North Dakota attorney Gary C. Dahle does not maintain an office in North Dakota, he is able to assist persons throughout the United States with their North Dakota probate, real estate, and mineral rights issues which do not require a court appearance – and many such issues do not.

Attorneys not licensed in North Dakota are invited to refer the North Dakota portion of the probate estate they are associated with to Minnesota and North Dakota attorney Gary C. Dahle, at 763-780-8390, or gary@dahlelaw.com.

Gary C. Dahle has represented clients from the countries of Canada, Norway, and Sweden, and the states of Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin in the United States, with respect to North Dakota mineral rights and probate issues in various North Dakota Counties.

http://www.legis.nd.gov/general-information/north-dakota-century-code

Minnesota and North Dakota attorney Gary C. Dahle does not represent oil companies – only owners of North Dakota mineral and royalty interests, and is currently accepting new clients.

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Ancillary Probate

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Intestate Succession.

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Inheritance Laws

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Intestate Estate

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Foreign Personal Representative

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Subsequent Administration

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Mineral Rights.

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Transfer on Death Deeds

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Affidavits of Heirship

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Informal Probate

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Formal Probate

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Probate Settlements

Topics of Interest – Probating a Will Copy in North Dakota

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Probate Closing

Topics of Interest – Newly Discovered North Dakota Property

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Joint Tenancy

Topics of Interest – North Dakota Mineral Rights Purchase Offers

Related issues – see Minnesota Probate.

For information on Ancillary Probate in Minnesota, see Minnesota Ancillary Probate.

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