Show STATE OF UTAH AND BIG OIL COMPANY DIVERT COLORADO RIVER INTO COURT the first gun in a legal battle that may involve millions of dollars and years of litigation was fired on the 2nd and instant when a summons was served on george T hansen president of the utah southern oil company to appear in the seventh judicial district court in san juan county within twenty days to face action started by the state of utah and the texas production company to secure a decree quieting title to the bed of the colorado river situated in the grand and san juan counties under its agreement with the state of utah the texas production company bound itself either to start development work on its colorado river leases on or before june 1 or litigation having as its aim settlement of the title to the river river bed on the cane creek shafer lockhart and other structures filed upon by the Colo river oil Cour company pany and ac quiren by the texas production company beginning of action in the seventh district court has been taken by the texas production company in compliance with its contracts with the state and the Colo river oil company the texas production company also has begun construction st ruction of rock cribbing preliminary to erecting a rig and setting up other equipment on its no 1 location about 40 0 feet north of the L shafer test on the cane creek structure by the utah southern the utah oil refining and the midwest exploration company crepps allen alien moab engineers and contractors who have been awarded the contract are in in charge of this work controversy has interesting features legal conte contention ution will probably center around the two points as to whether the colorado river is a navigable stream and whether ownership of the river bottom was ceded to the state of utah by the united states at the time of statehood should the state of utah and the texas production company be able to prove that title to the ground lying between the mean high water marks is vested in the state then the texas production company would be entitled to production gained from wells drilled in the river bed twelve and a half per cent of all revenues derived from river bed wells would then accrue to the state however the contention may arise that if title to the bottom passed to the state did the mineral or oil contained therein also change ownership clearing up of these points will have great significance at least from a legal standpoint should the southeastern utah structures lying along the colorado river prove to be prolific oil producers this litigation will have great economic importance for victory for the state of utah would divert large revenues into the coffers of the state defendants named in the summons by the state of ot utah and the texas production company plaintiffs are john L shafer frank shafer cassius A fisher john H shafer harry E crum D clark robert Y gibson paul T mayo earl E johnson ruth D pingree colorado river oil syndicate B 0 tones jones as trustee of colorado oil syndicate R M aitken as trustee of colorado river oil oi syndicate G T hansen as trustee of colorado river oil oi syndicate sandica te the midwest exploration company utah uil oil refining company midwest oil company wyoming associated oil company argo oil company big six oil com mountain producers and salt creek producers pany any association i 0 n attorneys r n ays eys for the plaintiffs are harvey H cluff actor general of the state of utah prosser Free freeman nian of ney nev denver denver george D parkinson and van cott riter farnsworth |