Emile practices onshore and offshore energy operations. His experience includes a broad range of business and industrial operations agreements, including services agreements, purchase orders, engineering, procurement, and construction project contracts, software and SaaS, and related agreements. Emile has extensive experience with all varieties of oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) contracts and oilfield service agreements, including drilling contracts, master service agreements, time charters, production handling, storage, transmission, and related E&P support contracts.
Emile routinely counsels E&P and energy clients on casualty and commercial risk mitigation and allocation through select contractual provisions and insurance programs, on the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Lands, subsea, in deepwater, and on conventional shelf operations, as well as onshore and downstream.
On the litigation side, Emile has represented clients in tort, indemnity, and other contract and commercial disputes, has prosecuted and defended mineral lien claims, maritime disputes, and bankruptcy proceedings, prosecuted claims on behalf of companies against insurers in property and liability coverage disputes and defended companies against property damage and contamination (legacy lawsuits) claims. He has also mediated, arbitrated, and litigated matters involving key aspects of joint operating agreements and disputes between joint interest partners.
EDUCATION
J.D., Loyola University College of Law (New Orleans), 2005
- Loyola Law Review (2003-2005)
- Loyola Moot Court (Member 2003-2005)
B.B.A., Economics, Loyola University New Orleans, 2002
- Top of Class Graduate
Loyola University Honors Curriculum
BAR ADMISSIONS
Louisiana
COURT ADMISSIONS
- U. S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana
- U. S. District Court, Middle District of Louisiana
- U. S. District Court, Western District of Louisiana
- U. S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE
- Represent industry subsea well containment response consortium on all operations contracts.
- Draft and negotiate master service agreements, drilling contracts and other maritime andoilfield service contracts.
- Revamped and streamlined large energy company’s master contracts and risk managementprogram and engaged in day-to-day negotiation and administration of contracts with vendorsand contractors.
- Advise clients on Louisiana and Texas oilfield and construction anti-indemnity statutes.
- Legal due diligence for purchase of Louisiana LNG operation.
- Major due diligence review for multimillion-dollar oil and gasacquisition.
- Representation of oil and gas company in defense of maritime lien claim against company’soffshore floating production facility located on the Outer Continental Shelf.
- Representation of industry clients filing amicus briefs relating to oil and gasissues before the Louisiana Supreme Court.
- Key land acquisition agreement for construction ofhospital facility.
- Representation of oil and gas companies in contractual disputes with co-working interestowners.
- Representation of oil and gas and oilfield service companies in filing, enforcing and defending liens and claims arising under Louisiana’s Oil Well Lien Act.
- Representation of oil and gas operators in civil penalty proceedings pertaining to noncompliance violations instituted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).
- Representation of companies in insurance coverage disputes.
- Represent companies in lawsuits involving contractual indemnity and other general contractual disputes.
- Representation of oil and gas companies in legacy/contamination lawsuits.
PUBLICATIONS AND SPEECHES
- “An Overview of the Recent Growing Opposition to Offshore Fracking.” Lafayette Association of Professional Landman, August 2017 (publication pending).
- “I’m Not My Lessor’s Keeper! Louisiana Supreme Court Declines to Expand a Mineral Lessor’s Duty to its Lessee.” AAPL’s Landman Magazine, March/April 2016.
- “Am I My Lessor’s Keeper? Louisiana Second Circuit Places New Duties on Mineral ” AAPL’s Landman Magazine, March/April 2015.
- “The Expansion of OCSLA to Offshore Indemnity Agreements.” ABA Section of EnergyLitigation, summer, Vol. 11, No. 3, 2012.
- Dreuil, Emile (and co-authors), 2003. “The Trade Gap: The Fallacy of Anti World-TradeSentiment.” Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 45, 2003, pp. 269-281.
- “Drilling Contracts, Legal Risk Allocation in Offshore Drilling Contracts,” presented at EUCISeminar on Offshore Contracts, May 21, 2014.
- Offshore Liens,” presented at the LORMAN Emerging Louisiana Legal and Land Issues onthe Outer Continental Shelf Seminar, March 18, 2014.
- “Maritime Liens for Oilfield Services,” presented at PLANO Executive Night Seminar, April11, 2013.