Practice area

Energy, Resources & Mining

Define the intended work in Energy, Resources & Mining, confirm the applicable requirements and select a task to plan the necessary review.

Key facts

Tasks covered: 30
Tasks with a step-by-step checklist: 11
Local differences: 3 jurisdictions where this area changes

Jurisdiction

Tasks

GreenLawyer reviewYellowClose supervisionRedLawyer-led

Tasks in Energy, Resources & Mining
Task	How AI is used	Human involvement	What the lawyer must review
Build a tenement and title due-diligence table from the registersStart this task See suggested levels	Collate register extracts, encumbrances and native-title or environmental-referral hits into a tenement due-diligence table with identifier, dates, conditions and gaps.	YellowClose supervision	Verify every identifier, expiry and condition against a same-day primary register search Do not treat generated tenement numbers as title
Build a tenement due-diligence table from registers, NativeTitleVision and EPBC historyChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	Collate register extracts, encumbrances, NNTT NativeTitleVision hits and EPBC or reform-Act referral history into a table of identifiers, dates, conditions and gaps.	YellowClose supervision	Verify every identifier, date, area and condition on the state register on the day of the opinion Use the state system: WA Tengraph/MiST, QLD MMOL, SA SARIG Confirm referral status on the Environment Register and whether the Environment Protection Reform Act 2025 (Cth) applies Note Tranche 1 from 20 February 2026 and the National EPA from 1 July 2026 Run a same-day NNTT NTV search; the NNTT disclaims accuracy and searches can lag three working days Confirm right-to-negotiate status and s 31 or s 32 deadlines Check if the ALRC Future Acts final report (31 March 2026) is implemented (18-month RTN, management plans)
Search New Zealand minerals permits under the Crown Minerals Act 1991Checklist Start this task See suggested levels	Extract permit type, minerals, area and parties from the instruction note into a due-diligence table.	YellowClose supervision	Search NZP&M permits under the Crown Minerals Act 1991 Do not search a state tenement register, Native Title Vision or EPBC history Check NZP&M law changes if the file involves petroleum or decommissioning
Screen native-title, Treaty or tribal-land process for the tenementStart this task See suggested levels	From the title and native-title searches on file, map possible future-act or Treaty/tribal-land pathways and list facts still needed. Do not select the pathway.	YellowClose supervision	Decide which process applies yourself; it is a high-consequence legal call Confirm claims, determinations and notice deadlines on current official registers
Screen native-title future-act, right-to-negotiate and ILUA process for the tenementChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	From title and native-title searches, map Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) future-act pathways (right to negotiate or expedited procedure) and missing facts. Do not pick one.	YellowClose supervision	Decide the procedure yourself Confirm determinations or claims over the land by same-day NNTT NTV search Confirm the category: expedited procedure, right to negotiate, compulsory acquisition, infrastructure Confirm s 29 notice deadlines, which vary by jurisdiction and cannot be extended Use the Native Title (ILUAs) Regulations 2024 (Cth) for new ILUAs (from 1 October 2024; 1999 Regulations replaced) Check the ALRC final report (31 March 2026): impact-based categories, 18-month RTN, five-year moratorium
Map offshore or onshore licence conditions and safety-case obligationsStart this task See suggested levels	From the licence and safety-case papers, table conditions, notification duties and operator/titleholder allocation, with a list of instruments cited for you to check.	YellowClose supervision	Read the site-specific licence conditions Verify the current safety regulations; a false condition can put the client outside the licence
Map OPGGS Act licence conditions and NOPSEMA safety-case obligationsChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	From the licence and safety-case papers, table OPGGS Act conditions, NOPSEMA or NOPTA notification duties and operator/titleholder split, listing instruments to check.	YellowClose supervision	Apply the OPGGS (Safety) Regulations 2024 (from 12 June 2025, replacing the 2009 Regulations) Check the new rules: diving supervisor incident reports to NOPSEMA, not the operator Check psychosocial health, sexual harassment, design notification and facility status change rules Confirm NOPSEMA notices under the Safety and Other Measures Act 2024 amendments Read the actual licence and confirm the titleholder/operator distinction (OPGGS Act Pt 1.2 Div 3) Check the OPGGS (Resource Management and Administration) Regulations 2025
Advise on Crown Minerals Act permits for the proposed activityChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	List the activities, location (onshore, coastal or offshore) and any health-and-safety or decommissioning points in the instructions.	YellowClose supervision	Apply the Crown Minerals Act 1991 and NZP&M, not OPGGS or NOPSEMA Check the 2025 Amendment Act (5 August 2025): purpose, allocation and decommissioning changed Confirm the current text of the Act before advising
Prepare the environmental-approvals pathway for the projectStart this task See suggested levels	Draft a first-pass approvals pathway (referral, assessment, conditions review) from the project description, listing possible triggers and documents still needed.	YellowClose supervision	Confirm the transitional environmental regime actually in force Check the environment register before advising that no referral exists
Prepare the approvals pathway under the Environment Protection Reform Act 2025 (Cth)Checklist Start this task See suggested levels	Draft a first-pass referral, controlled-action and conditions pathway, listing matters of national environmental significance that may be triggered and missing documents.	YellowClose supervision	Confirm the regime: Environment Protection Reform Act 2025 (Cth), passed 28 November 2025 Note Tranche 1 from 20 February 2026, National EPA from 1 July 2026, the rest by 1 December 2026 Treat old EPBC Act 1999 framing as a starting point only Check the Environment Register for a referral and apply the National Environmental Standards in force Confirm whether state bilateral accreditation still applies Verify penalties: civil up to about AUD 15.65 million or turnover-based; up to 7 years' jail Check the National EPA's stop-work and audit powers
Map decommissioning obligations and financial-assurance gapsStart this task See suggested levels	From the licence, JOA and regulator guidance on the file, table decommissioning duties, security and transfer conditions, with document cites.	YellowClose supervision	Decide who pays and whether a transfer is permitted from the title and the JOA Do not advise from a generated table alone
Draft or redline a joint operating agreement or farmoutStart this task See suggested levels	Produce a first-draft JOA or farmout from the term sheet, or redline the other side's paper on operatorship, work programme, default, assignment and offtake.	YellowClose supervision	Check consistency with the tenement conditions Check any government consent to assignment
Draft or review a royalty, streaming or offtake agreementStart this task See suggested levels	Extract payment mechanics, delivery, quality, audit and change-of-control into an issues table, or draft first-pass clauses from the term sheet.	YellowClose supervision	Check payment waterfalls and audit rights match the commercial deal Check security over the royalty if instructed
Map energy-transition licensing for the project (wind, CCS, critical minerals)Start this task See suggested levels	From the project type and the licences on the file, table candidate wind, carbon-storage or critical-minerals licensing steps and open questions.	YellowClose supervision	Verify every licence type, fee and timeline on the current instrument the same day Treat each as a hypothesis until checked; energy-transition rules move quickly
Map offshore-wind, CCS, critical-minerals and Safeguard Mechanism licensingChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	Table licensing steps under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021 (Cth), OPGGS greenhouse-gas storage, critical-minerals framework and Safeguard Mechanism.	YellowClose supervision	Check, for offshore wind, the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Amendment Regulations 2024 (from 12 December 2024) Check the Licence Administration Guideline (January 2026, adding Research and Demonstration licences) Check the OPGGS (Resource Management and Administration) Regulations 2025 for CCS Check the November 2025 CCS consultation on decommissioning and financial assurance Check Clean Energy Regulator Safeguard Mechanism guidance: reformed 1 July 2023; baselines from 2024-25 Note first SMCs February 2025 and a review due 2026-27; verify every licence, fee and timeline at source that day Check, for critical minerals, the US-Australia Framework (20 October 2025) for FIRB and export-control effects
Review cultural-heritage and mine-closure obligations on the tenementStart this task See suggested levels	From the tenement and closure papers, list cultural-heritage, mine-closure and rehabilitation obligations with document cites and the local regime that appears to apply.	YellowClose supervision	Confirm the operative heritage Act; there is no uniform national scheme Check for repealed regimes, which still appear in training data Take bond figures from the regulator
Review Aboriginal cultural-heritage and mine-closure obligations on the tenementChecklist Start this task See suggested levels	From the tenement and closure papers, list Aboriginal cultural-heritage, mine-closure and rehabilitation obligations with cites and the state regime that seems to apply.	YellowClose supervision	Confirm the state or territory heritage Act; there is no national scheme, and NT, Qld, NSW, SA and Vic differ WA: apply the amended Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 (WA), including s 18 consents with SAT review Remember the WA Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2021 was repealed in November 2023 Check whether an ACH Management Plan under the 2021 Act became a s 18 consent under transitional provisions Check closure-plan rules in the current state mining Act and regulations Take rehabilitation bonds from the regulator
Prepare affidavits, chronologies and a discovery index for a resources disputeStart this task See suggested levels	From the permitted file — tenement register extracts, the JOA and its default notices, drilling and production reports, royalty statements and departmental correspondence — the tool builds a dated chronology and a discovery index keyed to document numbers, citing the source document for every entry, and indexes the exhibits and annexures to each affidavit. It writes no part of any affidavit or witness statement, not a sentence of the text and no suggested paragraphs, and on the sworn evidence does only this: it lists the facts that still need a source and compares the affidavit the lawyer has written against the proofing note, the cited documents and the form requirements of the court or arbitral tribunal.	RedLawyer-led	You write every affidavit yourself from the deponent's own account, and before it is sworn you check your draft against the proofing note and the exhibits, and confirm each paragraph is something the deponent can say from their own knowledge. Test each chronology entry and index row against the document it cites — dates on the drilling, production and royalty records, and who sent and received each JOA or default notice — and confirm that privileged, without-prejudice and confidential technical material has not been swept into the index for production.
Draft a client advice letter on title, approvals or project statusStart this task See suggested levels	From the tenement extracts and approvals map, draft a structured advice letter with open questions and document cites.	YellowClose supervision	Base title conclusions on current searches Verify every licence condition cited
Extract change-of-control and assignment consent from the JOA and tenementStart this task See suggested levels	Table JOA assignment, pre-emption, change-of-control and any government-consent conditions with clause and title references.	GreenLawyer review	Check every pre-emption right and ministerial consent; a missed one can unwind a deal
Build a work-programme and expenditure-commitment tracker from the titleStart this task See suggested levels	From the licence and any JOA work programme, list commitments, due dates, relinquishment risk and reported expenditure on the file.	GreenLawyer review	Confirm against the current title conditions and regulator correspondence Check every commitment; a missed one can forfeit the tenement
Lodge a tenement transfer or dealing for registrationStart this task See suggested levels	Populate the jurisdiction's prescribed transfer and dealing forms and the lodgement checklist from the executed agreement, the current register extract and the holder's corporate details, and draft the covering letter and fee schedule.	GreenLawyer review	The lawyer confirms the dealing is registrable, that any required approval or consent has been obtained, that duty has been dealt with where the jurisdiction requires it before lodgement, and that the parties, tenement numbers, shares and interests match the executed agreement and the register.
Prepare the annual tenement reporting and expenditure returnStart this task See suggested levels	Map the holder's expenditure ledger and field activity records to the categories in the prescribed report, draft the report and the activity summary, and list every reported item that has no supporting source document.	GreenLawyer review	The lawyer decides what is allowable expenditure on each tenement, whether combined or group reporting applies, and whether the reported work meets the tenement's conditions, before the return is lodged.
Settle the land access and compensation agreement with the landholderStart this task See suggested levels	Assemble the activity description, notice dates and heads of compensation into a working draft against the firm's agreement precedent under the lawyer's direction, and compare the landholder's mark-up against the statutory minimum content and the applicable access code.	YellowClose supervision	The lawyer takes instructions on the activities actually proposed, tests each compensation head against the statutory basis, confirms the notice and negotiation steps were validly taken, and advises on the consequences if agreement is not reached.
Prepare the cultural heritage approval pack for ground disturbanceStart this task See suggested levels	Draft the activity and impact description, the consultation log and the management measures table from the survey reports and the lawyer's instructions, and check the draft against the statutory content requirements for the plan or permit.	YellowClose supervision	The lawyer confirms which regime applies to this activity and this land, that the right party is named as applicant or sponsor, that every consultation and notification step required by the Act has been completed, and whether a separate approval is needed for harm to a known place.
Reconcile the disturbance data and prepare the rehabilitation provisioning returnStart this task See suggested levels	Reconcile the surveyed disturbance areas against the previous return and the title conditions, populate the regulator's cost estimate tool and the return, and draft a variance note for each changed line.	GreenLawyer review	The lawyer confirms the disturbance categories claimed, that every conditioned rehabilitation obligation is captured, and whether the change triggers a variation of the security, contribution or levy before the return is lodged.
Prepare the energy retail authorisation or licence applicationStart this task See suggested levels	Draft the application sections against the regulator's guideline from the client's corporate, financial and systems material, and build the schedule of supporting documents with each guideline criterion mapped to the evidence relied on.	YellowClose supervision	The lawyer tests whether an authorisation, a licence or an exemption is the right pathway for each jurisdiction of supply, verifies the suitability and capacity claims against the client's actual arrangements, and confirms the customer-facing obligations the client will assume on grant.
Assemble the market registration and connection application packStart this task See suggested levels	Populate the market operator's registration forms and the connection enquiry pack from the project's technical data and corporate details, and build a completeness table against the application guide's checklist.	GreenLawyer review	The lawyer settles the participant category and classification sought, checks eligibility and any exemption relied on, and confirms the technical annexures and performance standard commitments come from the responsible engineer rather than from the person assembling the pack.
Prepare the incident notification and report to the safety regulatorStart this task See suggested levels	Build the incident chronology and the notification timetable from the site records under the lawyer's direction, and assemble the report against the regulator's form so that every stated fact carries its source.	YellowClose supervision	The lawyer settles what happened and how it is characterised, checks the notification category and the deadline against the regulations, and decides what is reported, what is privileged and who signs.
Compile the expenditure evidence for a contested exemption or forfeiture challengeStart this task See suggested levels	Index the expenditure vouchers, contractor invoices, field records and previously reported activity against each tenement and expenditure year, and list the assertions in the lawyer's draft that no indexed document supports. The tool writes no part of the declaration or affidavit and supplies no wording for it.	RedLawyer-led	The lawyer drafts the evidence with the deponent, confirms the deponent's own knowledge of each expenditure item, and checks the application and objection deadlines and the form of swearing required.
Advise mining company directors on AI and privilegeChecklist Start this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia only	Draft guidance on using AI with legal advice at board level.	YellowClose supervision	Lawyer settles privilege position.
Set up an AI protocol for supervising staff on resources disputesChecklist Start this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia only	Draft supervision and verification steps for AI use.	GreenLawyer review	Partner approves; Mills Oakley case shows costs risk.
Summarise tenement registers and conditions for due diligenceChecklist Start this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia only	Extract tenement, holder and condition data.	YellowClose supervision	Verify against the mining register.
Review a JOA or farmout for AI-flagged anomaliesChecklist Start this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia only	Use AI to flag unusual clauses in a document set.	YellowClose supervision	Lawyer confirms each flag.
Prepare a regulatory-change digest for energy clientsChecklist Start this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia only	Summarise AEMO/AER updates.	GreenLawyer review	Check dates against the source.
Advise on copyright risk in training AI on geological or technical dataStart this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia onlySource basis: Area-specific AU source in links	Explain the absence of a TDM exception and the licensing options.	YellowClose supervision	Lawyer gives the advice.
Map energy and water impacts of data-centre or AI projects for approvalsStart this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia onlySource basis: Area-specific AU source in links	Summarise the Senate findings for project approvals.	YellowClose supervision	Lawyer checks the current law.
Summarise mining tenement conditions into a compliance calendarStart this task See suggested levelsWritten for AustraliaAustralia onlySource basis: General AI-use guidance applied	Extract conditions and due dates.	GreenLawyer review	Verify against the register.

Firm-wide obligations

Firm-wide obligations
Obligation	What it covers
Trust accounting & handling client money	Checks that apply across files.
Costs, billing & litigation funding	Checks that apply across files.
Client-facing & access-to-justice AI tools	Checks that apply across files.
Incoming evidence — deepfakes & synthetic documents	Checks that apply across files.
AI decision systems	Checks that apply across files.
Confidentiality & client information	Checks that apply across files.
AML/CTF — the practice as a reporting entity	Checks that apply across files.

What changes in Australia

What changes in Australia
Topic	What changes
Regimes	Commonwealth and state regimes overlap: OPGGS Act, Environment Protection Reform Act 2025 (Cth) (replacing the EPBC Act in tranches from 20 February 2026), state Mining Acts and Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).
Contracts and transition	Bespoke JOAs, farmouts, royalty deeds and offtake agreements, plus energy-transition work: critical minerals, CCS, offshore wind and the Safeguard Mechanism.
Recent changes	OPGGS Safety Regulations 2024 remade June 2025; EPBC reform package passed November 2025; WA Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2021 repealed November 2023; ALRC Future Acts final report March 2026.
Registers	Tenement data comes from government databases with acknowledged accuracy limits. Search the primary register the same day.
Native title timing	Future-act and right-to-negotiate timelines vary by jurisdiction and cannot be extended. A wrong permit condition or missed native title step can invalidate a tenement or bring criminal penalties.

What changes in New Zealand

Known here as: Energy, resources and mining (Crown Minerals Act 1991)

What changes in New Zealand
Topic	What changes
Governing Act	Crown Minerals Act 1991 permits to prospect, explore and mine Crown-owned minerals. Not an Australian tenement statute, the OPGGS Act or a NOPSEMA safety case.
Regulator	New Zealand Petroleum & Minerals administers the regime. Search NZP&M permits, not a state tenement register or Native Title Vision.
2025 amendments	Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (enacted 5 August 2025): purpose now 'promote'; ban on new oil and gas exploration beyond onshore Taranaki removed; allocation and decommissioning changed.
Māori interests	Iwi and hapū consultation is built into the Minerals Programmes. The Act limits land entry in areas of special importance to Māori. Native Title Act future-act machinery does not apply.
Other consents	A minerals permit is not a resource consent under the RMA. Overseas investors: Overseas Investment Act 2005, not FIRB.
Limits on AI assistance	Do not file a generated citation, quote or statutory reference until you have opened it in legislation.govt.nz or a trusted case database. Do not enter private, confidential, suppressed or privileged material into a public chatbot.

What changes in United States

Known here as: Energy, resources and mining

What changes in United States
Topic	What changes
Governing law	Federal energy regulation (FERC, federal lands, federal environmental statutes) sits beside state oil-and-gas, mining and utility law.
No national code	No single mining code like an Australian state mining Act. Confirm the regulator before a tool picks a statute.

Precedents for this area

Land access arrangement with landholder for exploration (NSW, with Queensland notes) (Agreement, AI use Yellow). Agreed access arrangement under Part 8 Division 2 of the Mining Act 1992 (NSW) that sets where, when and how an explorer may prospect, the compensation payable, rehabilitation and dispute resolution.
Native title right-to-negotiate (s 31) agreement checklist (Checklist, AI use Yellow). Step-by-step checklist for the Native Title Act right-to-negotiate process for a mining tenement: notification, timetable, good-faith negotiation, deed terms, arbitral determinations, and safeguards for cultural information.
Farm-in and unincorporated joint venture heads of terms (mining tenement) (Agreement, AI use Yellow). Non-binding heads of terms for a farmee to earn an interest in exploration tenements by sole funding staged expenditure, then form an unincorporated joint venture.
Corporate renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) term sheet (Agreement, AI use Yellow). Indicative term sheet for a corporate buyer contracting with a renewable generator in the National Electricity Market, as a sleeved physical PPA or a virtual (financial) PPA, including certificates and change in law.
AI-assisted tenement, title and approvals due diligence protocol (Checklist, AI use Yellow). Protocol for using AI to extract tenement, holder, condition and encumbrance data from register searches at scale, with mandatory source tracing, verification and supervision before anything reaches the due diligence report.
Clause: autonomous and AI-enabled equipment in mining services contracts (Clause, AI use Yellow). Contract clause allocating safety-case, validation, human supervision, change control, incident, data and liability responsibilities for autonomous haulage, drilling and other AI-enabled plant on a mine site.

All precedents for Energy, Resources & Mining. Signed-in accounts can read the full text.

Related jurisdictions

Australia New Zealand United States