by Professor Chris Kulander, Director, Oil & Gas Institute
The Harry L. Reed Institute for Oil & Gas Law at South Texas College of Law Houston was founded with Professor Reed’s blessing and largess in 2014. As the eighth year of the Institute’s existence begins, it’s time to look both back and ahead.
At the heart of the Institute are the students. Paired with a vibrant student group, the Oil & Gas Legal Society, a student-driven Energy Newsletter has sprung up and has appeared annually. Students have taken advantage of the school’s location in the world’s energy capital to attend conferences put on by groups such as the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN) and the Institute for Energy Law (IEL). The Institute has assisted with attendance costs with the help of alum Jeff Steen. The Institute also interfaces with the 800-member strong South Texas Energy Alums and maintains a blog entitled The Pipeline.
We currently have approved courses in Oil, Gas & Mineral Law, Domestic Petroleum Transactions, Offshore Oil & Gas Law, Texas Oil, Gas and Land Title, Transactional Skills—Energy Finance, Transactional Skills—Oil & Gas, and International Petroleum Transactions. To my knowledge, no other law school in the world offers more oil, gas, and energy courses than South Texas Houston. In addition, the school offers courses that complement the program such as Water Law, Environmental Law, Domestic Energy Law, and Land Use Control.
The future looks bright. The Institute is considering partnering with natural resource groups such as the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation (RMMLF) and Live Oak CLE. One goal is to merge sponsorship of the Institute’s annual (before Hurricane Harvey and the pandemic, that is) two-day oil & gas law symposium so that our location can be leveraged alongside the promotional and organizational strengths of AIPN, IEL, and RMMLF. Other courses are being considered. More space for the student group is being designed.
As my own writing and teaching in the field of oil and gas law continues, I’m excited to see what comes next for the Institute.
Learn more about the Harry L. Reed Institute for Oil and Gas
