Denver, CO — Richards Carrington LLC announced today that the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado has granted class certification to a group of Colorado landowners in their lawsuit against HRM Resources LLC, marking a significant step forward in the fight to hold the company accountable for abandoning oil and gas wells left on the landowners’ property.
In a detailed 30-page ruling issued by Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney, the Court certified the proposed class. The plaintiffs allege that HRM, in an attempt to avoid its liabilities, unlawfully transferred over 200 oil and gas wells to a smaller company, Painted Pegasus Petroleum, which later went bankrupt — leaving behind millions of dollars in cleanup obligations.
Judge Sweeney found that the plaintiffs met all requirements under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including numerosity, commonality, predominance, and superiority. The Court criticized HRM’s repeated attempts to “distract” from the key issues and ruled that any differences between landowners’ properties or contracts did not undermine the shared core claims.
“This is a major victory for our Colorado landowner clients and for the application of a core Colorado value – if you pack it in, you pack it out – to the oil and gas industry,” said Christopher P. Carrington, partner at Richards Carrington LLC. “We appreciate the Court’s diligent analysis and look forward to prosecuting this case for the benefit of everyone impacted by HRM’s actions.”
The Court also granted class certification for injunctive and declaratory relief, allowing the plaintiffs to seek an order requiring HRM Resources to clean up the abandoned wells — a remedy that serves both private property owners and the broader public interest.
The plaintiffs are represented by Richards Carrington LLC, ClientEarth USA Inc., and The Borison Firm LLC, which the Court appointed as class counsel.
The case is Cindy McCormick et al. v. HRM Resources LLC et al., Case No. 1:24-cv-00823, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
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