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San Juan 1990-A2/19/2002
This matter comes before the Court on the motion of the Defendants-Appellees, El Paso Production Company, Meridian Oil, Inc., and John Doe, to dismiss this appeal because the notice of appeal was filed late. We agree that the notice of appeal was filed late and hold that the reasons for the late filing do not support the exercise of this Court's limited discretion to consider the appeal. Accordingly, we grant the motion and dismiss the appeal.
Plaintiffs-Appellants (Plaintiffs) are royalty owners of wells in the San Juan basin. They filed suit against El Paso Production Company, Meridian Oil, Inc., and John Doe, collectively referred to as El Paso/Meridian (Defendants), alleging that Defendants had improperly computed royalty payments to them by deducting expenses Defendants had incurred to produce and market conventional and coalseam gas since the late 1980s. There were originally six such cases filed in district court. The district court consolidated this case with two other cases for some purposes. However, the final judgment was filed in each of the three cases and the three cases were docketed in this Court as separate cases with separate docket numbers. Later, this Court consolidated the three cases.
The district court entered a final judgment in favor of Defendants in all three cases on January 22, 2001. Thirty days from January 22 was February 21. Notices of appeal with various orders attached were filed in all three cases on February 22, 2001. On April 17, 2001, Defendants moved to dismiss the appeal because the notice of appeal was filed a day late. Ultimately, this Court remanded the matter to the district court with instructions that the district court hold a hearing and enter findings of fact concerning its entry of a January 29 order, and concerning the events surrounding the filing of the notices of appeal.
The district court heard the matter on a stipulated evidentiary record, supplemented by arguments of the parties. Its findings of fact were filed on September 6, 2001. The parties have since filed timely supplemental memoranda.
The Facts as Found by the District Court.
The parties do not challenge the findings of fact made by the district court, and they therefore constitute the facts of this case. Stueber v. Pickard, 112 N.M. 489, 491, 816 P.2d 1111, 1113 (1991). We summarize those facts.
Facts Concerning the Filing of the January 29 Order.
The January 29 order resolved a discovery dispute between Plaintiffs and Defendants El Paso/Meridian. The matter had been heard in July 1999. At the close of the hearing, the district court granted Plaintiffs' motion to compel and for sanctions, and directed Plaintiffs' counsel to submit an affidavit for fees. In the course of exchanging drafts of a proposed order, an issue developed concerning the scope of the fee award. Alternative versions of the order were presented to the court and a presentment hearing was requested. However, no presentment hearing was scheduled and the litigation proceeded.
On January 22, 2001, the court held a hearing on the entry of the final judgment in the case. Just before the hearing, primary counsel for Plaintiffs and counsel for Defendants reached an agreement concerning the amount of costs and attorney fees to be awarded pursuant to the court's ruling in July 1999. Counsel informed the court on the record that agreement had been reached as to the form of the order. By letter dated January 24, 2001, Defendants' counsel submitted a proposed order to the court which had been approved by counsel for Plaintiffs and by counsel for Defendants. Counsel for Amoco, Blackwood & Nichols, and Devon Energy Cor
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