A proposed settlement has been reached in the class action lawsuit against TEP Rocky Mountain LLC. A class action is a type of lawsuit where one person (or a few people) sue on behalf of a larger group of people who have similar legal issues. This way, everyone in the group can potentially get compensation without each person having to file their own separate lawsuit. Class actions are used when many people are affected by the same problem, so the court can handle it all at once instead of repeating the same case over and over.
Nate Keever, a partner here at Dufford Waldeck, is the lead trial attorney for the royalty owners. The lawsuit alleges that TEP underpaid royalty payments for natural gas wells in Garfield County, Colorado, that are connected to the Grand Valley Gathering System. Specifically, the royalty owners alleged that, at various times from August 1, 2011, through December 31, 2020, TEP paid royalties based on prices that were too low and made improper deductions for certain costs.
After six years of litigation, which included numerous depositions, written discovery, a three-day contested class certification hearing, and months of negotiations, TEP has agreed to pay $41.7 million to settle the lawsuit. Details about how the money will be divided among class members are explained in the Settlement Agreement, which is available to view on our website www.dwmk.com.
The Settlement Agreement has been preliminarily approved by the Court as being fair, reasonable, and adequate. A final approval hearing is set for August 1, 2025. The website also includes a spreadsheet where you can look up the amount you've been allocated—just use your TEP Owner Number. Distributions will be made once the Settlement Agreement is approved.
This has been a long fight for Dufford Waldeck, but the great result for the royalty owners makes it worthwhile. Stay tuned, because another class action filed by Nate on behalf of the royalty owners is proceeding in Garfield County District Court to address the alleged underpayment of royalty payments made by TEP from January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2024.
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