Mining and Mineral Processing Law

Locally Based and Globally Capable Mining Attorneys

Parsons Behle & Latimer’s mining lawyers provide comprehensive legal services to domestic and international companies that explore, mine, process and sell base and precious metals; coal; industrial minerals; and aggregates and cement. Our firm has the experience to assist clients with the drafting and negotiation of mining joint ventures, options and joint operating agreements, land and mineral leases, EPCM contracts, power supply contracts, smelting and refining contracts, sales and marketing agreements, and other business agreements. We advise clients with regard to mergers and acquisitions, the sale or acquisition of mining properties and processing facilities, and general corporate issues, both domestic and foreign. Our lawyers also perform due diligence, title opinions and offer mining claim advice and provide counsel on environmental liability, cleanup reclamation issues.

Contact: Jim Butler, 801.536.6821, JButler@parsonsbehle.com or Mike Malmquist – 801-536-6658, MMalmquist@parsonsbehlelaw.com or Stephen J. Hull – 801-536-6601, Shull@parsonsbehlelaw.com to discuss your mining law needs.

Mining & Mineral Processing

With beginnings as a mining firm over 125 years ago, Parsons Behle & Latimer prides itself in having one of the strongest mining practices in the West. Our attorneys serve domestic and international mining companies of all sizes, from juniors to some of the largest mineral producers in the world. While much of our work is in the American West, we have also assisted clients with mining projects across the globe, including in Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Venezuela, Africa, Indonesia, and Romania.

The attorneys in our mining group have the experience and knowledge to provide timely and effective advice and solutions for the myriad issues facing modern mining and mineral processing companies, whether it be financing; mergers and acquisitions; joint ventures; exploration agreements; environmental permitting, compliance and diligence; title, mining claims, and other land use authorizations; royalty and refining agreements; complex joint operating agreements; water rights; electrical power supply and infrastructure; or appeals and litigation.

Virtually every practice group in the firm provides services to our mining clients, including our employment group, our immigration group, our litigation group, our energy and communications group, and our corporate and finance group. Parsons Behle & Latimer is truly are a full service law firm to the mining industry.

Base and Precious Metals
Our attorneys have teamed with mining companies in development and operation of some of the largest base and precious metal mines and processing facilities in the world, including a copper mine and smelter in Utah, a lead smelter in Peru, and world class gold mines in Nevada, Peru, and a host of other states and countries. From securing the rights to the mineral deposit, to obtaining financing and environmental permits, to negotiating ECM, mine supply, smelter and other business agreements, to day-to-day operation and compliance, to reclamation and closure, our attorneys advise and assist base and precious metal producers in nearly every aspect of their business. Our clients range from small Canadian juniors to some of the world's largest and most diversified international mining companies, and everything in between. We pride ourselves in our knowledge of this industry sector and our ability to serve it well.

Attorneys focused on this area:

• Hull, Stephen J.
• Winmill, Patricia J.
• Lehman, Mark E.
• Ford, Lindsay M.
• Hill, Earl M.

Coal
Parsons Behle & Latimer mining lawyers have extensive experience representing both buyers and sellers in connection with multi-state complex coal mine acquisitions. Most of these transactions involved large corporations with multiple mines located in various states including Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia.

To assist with coal mine acquisitions, we can assemble an interdisciplinary team of attorneys and paralegals from the firm's corporate, natural resources & energy, environmental and litigation departments who can handle all aspects of the transaction in a highly integrated, comprehensive and cost efficient manner.

In our experience, this approach is far more efficient to the client compared with a state-by-state approach. At the same time, our approach can be tailored to your needs and any acquisition counsel you might engage. The legal matters we can handle include:

• Review and analysis of coal leases and coal supply agreements, particularly long-term, high price coal contracts
• Environmental permitting and due diligence
• Acquisition structure, planning, analysis and implementation
• General corporate/partnership, securities and tax issues
• Negotiation of acquisition agreements and financing instruments
• Title and real property issues
• Permit block/AVS due diligence
• Review of litigation risks
• Review of employment matters, including ERISA and MSHA
• Review of insurance matters
• Hart Scott Rodino filings
• A partial list of representative coal mine acquisition transactions follows:

Acquisition of Colowyo Coal Company

Represented Kennecott Colorado Coal Company in its general partnership interest acquisition of the Colowyo Coal, a major coal company located in Colorado's Uinta Basin.
Acquisition of Nerco, Inc. and Cordero Mining Co.

Represented Kennecott in the acquisition through merger of NERCO, Inc., a $1.3 billion New York Stock Exchange-listed coal company. The acquisition involved ten coal mines located in seven states.

Sale of Coastal Coal Mines

Represented the Coastal Corporation in the sale of three large underground coal mines located in Utah to Atlantic Richfield and Itochu Corporation in October 1996.
Acquisition of Lodestar Energy Mines

Represented Lodestar Energy (a division of Renco Inc.) in the acquisition of operating underground mines in Colorado and Utah.

Attorneys focused on this area:

• Stevens, Lawrence E.
• Rencher, Ronald R.
• Hull, Stephen J.
• Winmill, Patricia J.
• Pos, Hal J. 
• Venti, Katherine E.

Industrial Minerals, Aggregates and Cement

We advise companies involved in extracting and processing industrial minerals such as potash, magnesium, limestone, specialty sands, building stone, and salt, primarily with regard to environmental permitting, water rights, reclamation, zoning and land use, leasing, mining claim and title, transactional issues, leasand litigation. We provide a similar range of services to companies involved in the mining and processing of aggregate and in the production of cement, both of which are coming under increased state and local regulation due to their location within or near the expanding urban population centers they serve.

The attorneys in our mining group have the experience and knowledge to provide timely and effective advice and solutions for the myriad issues facing modern mining and mineral processing companies, whether it be financing; mergers and acquisitions; joint ventures; exploration agreements; environmental permitting, compliance and diligence; title, mining claims, and other land use authorizations; royalty and refining agreements; complex joint operating agreements; water rights; electrical power supply and infrastructure; or appeals and litigation.

Virtually every practice group in the firm provides services to our mining clients, including our employment group, our immigration group, our litigation group, our energy and communications group, and our corporate and finance group. Parsons Behle & Latimer is truly are a full service law firm to the mining industry.

Attorneys focused on this area:

• Winmill, Patricia J.
• Ford, Lindsay

We are among the most respected legal names in mining law in the Intermountain West region. Contact us to schedule a consultation.