We represented Venoco, Inc., a mid-size oil and gas company based in Colorado, in a contract dispute with Denbury Onshore, LLC, a subsidiary of Denbury Resources, Inc., regarding Venoco’s reversionary interest in a Texas oilfield, wherein the parties disputed the meaning of several terms that affected when “payout” would occur. After a week-long arbitration hearing before a three-member panel, we obtained a unanimous award in favor of Venoco with respect to all three contractual interpretation declarations sought. Venoco was also awarded most of its attorneys’ fees, costs, and expert fees in a discretionary decision by the panel. The present-day value of the award to the client is estimated to be in the $100 million range. Denbury moved to vacate the award in Harris County District Court. On February 11, 2015, the court denied Denbury’s motion to vacate and confirmed the award.
