CHEBOYGAN (AP) — Chesapeake Energy has pleaded no contest to attempted antitrust violations and agreed to pay $25 million to settle claims that it conspired to keep prices down during an auction for oil and gas leases, state officials announced.
“This is a victory for Michigan taxpayers and a victory for all the Michigan land owners who took deep hits to their pocketbooks following the October 2010 private land auction,” Attorney General Bill Schuette said in a written
statement. “This settlement will achieve recovery for every one of the more than 700 affected victims who come forward and make a valid claim.”
The per-acre cost of leases had dropped to $40 from $1,510.
In addition to the $25 million, Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake will pay $5 million to the state. Encana Oil and Gas USA agreed last year to pay $5 million.
Separately, Chesapeake pleaded no contest to two misdemeanors in northern Michigan’s Cheboygan County. The case will be dismissed next year if Chesapeake follows the settlement.
- Posted April 29, 2015
- Tweet This | Share on Facebook
Chesapeake Energy to pay to settle lease probe
headlines Macomb
- Lawyer publishes first of three children’s books
- An appeals court dismisses charges against a Michigan election worker who downloaded a voter list
- Supreme Court denies rehearing request by attorneys sanctioned for meritless election lawsuit
- Nessel testifies in support of BRITE Act
- A lab chief's sentencing for meningitis deaths is postponed, extending grief of victims' families
headlines National
- New Legalese: You may have heard a deepfake, but what about ‘Twiqbal’?
- From Intake to Outcome: An in-house lawyer’s guide to matter management solutions
- 2 BigLaw firms in merger talks that could produce 1,600-lawyer firm with top 50 revenue
- Send in the paralegals
- Lawyer reprimanded after mistakenly emailing opposing counsel with plan to avoid judge’s call
- ‘I don’t play well’ judge who threatened to track down, jail misbehaving litigant gets tossed from case