Brendan Andrew O'Donnell
Oil, Gas, Renewable Energy and Zoning Attorney serving landowners
An attorney in Houston Harbaugh’s Oil and Gas Practice, Brendan O’Donnell has represented oil and gas owners across Pennsylvania in a wide array of oil and gas matters for over a decade. This experience involves not only the Marcellus shale and the Utica shale, but more traditional oil and gas development as well.
Brendan maintains a diverse practice, representing clients in all matters involving oil and gas spanning the transactional and litigation realms. On the transactional front, Brendan routinely assists landowners with negotiating oil and gas leases, pipeline rights of way and surface use agreements and subsurface easements related to horizontal drilling as part of Marcellus and Utica shale development. Brendan also frequently reviews royalty statements and oil and gas ownership issues as well as preparing deeds and title curative documents. Brendan also maintains an active litigation practice, representing clients in state and federal courts, as well as private arbitration matters. This litigation often involves title disputes, pooling and unitization challenges, lease termination questions and royalty/ post-production cost claims.
Assisting clients across the spectrum from contract negotiations through litigation and appeals gives Brendan valuable first-hand knowledge about how oil and gas agreements are prepared, how disputes arise and how courts resolve these issues. Brendan stays up-to-date on developments in oil and gas law and writes frequently on the these topics. Additionally, as alternative energy generation like wind and solar are increasingly being developed in oil and gas producing regions, Brendan assists clients with navigating the interplay between these complex energy developments and evaluating solar agreements.
Brendan complements his oil and gas practice by representing property owners, including oil and gas owners, in zoning and land use matters. Brendan has represented clients before municipal bodies and in appeals to court.
- University of Pittsburgh School of Law
- J.D. (2010) | Law
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- Honors: Magna Cum Laude
- Activities: Law Review
- University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh
- B.A. (2006) | Political Science ; Spanish
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- Honors: Magna Cum Laude
- Activities: Phi Beta Kappa
- Director
- Houston Harbaugh, P.C.
- - Current
- Senior Attorney
- Houston Harbaugh, P.C.
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- Representing Pennsylvania oil and gas royalty owners in transactional and litigation matters.
- Associate
- Smith Butz, LLC
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- General practice focusing on representation of royalty owners in oil and gas matters and individuals and municipalities in land use/zoning matters.
- Hordis v. Cabot Oil and Gas Corporation: Landowner Challenges Whether Driller Can Ignore Pooling Clause and Simply Rely on Act 85
- www.hh-law.com
- The New Royalty Bill is Good for Pennsylvania Landowners
- www.hh-law.com
- West Virginia Federal Court Rules that Lease Did Not Authorize the Deduction of Post-Production Costs
- www.hh-law.com
- Pennsylvania Court Rules That Shut-In Royalty Provision Had No Connection to the Duration of an Oil and Gas Lease
- Houston Harbaugh Oil & Gas Addendum
- Royalty Litigation and the Deduction of Post-Production Costs, Washington County Bench Winter Bench Bar, Hilton Garden Inn, Southpointe
- Washington County Bar Association
- Providing Notice of Lease Termination, Online
- Washington County Bar Association
- Drafting and Negotiating Oil and Gas Lease Addendums, Washington County Bar Association Winter Bench Bar, Hilton Garden Inn, Southpointe
- Washington County Bar Association
- State Bar of Pennsylvania  # 309007
- Member
- Current
- Allegheny County Bar Association
- Current
- Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Current
- Pennsylvania
- Free Consultation
- Credit Cards Accepted
- Energy, Oil & Gas Law
- Utilities
- Real Estate Law
- Easements, Eminent Domain, Homeowners Association, Land Use & Zoning, Neighbor Disputes, Water Law
- English: Spoken, Written