The Fair Negotiation Center

Both sides see the same data.
For the first time in 100 years.

Mineral leasing has always been an asymmetric fight. Operators know the comps, the production history, the drilling plans, the legal levers. Owners get a one-page lease and a phone call. Landlock ends that. Every offer is scored. Every clause is explained. Every comp is exposed. The Fair Deal Score is non-negotiable infrastructure — and it cuts both ways.

The Problem We're Killing

Information asymmetry is the entire business model of leasing — and it's costing owners billions.

The landman knows what your neighbor signed for. You don't. The landman knows the operator just hit a 1,200 BOE/day well three sections away. You don't. The landman knows that "post-production deductions" clause will skim 18% off your royalty for 30 years. You don't.

We've benchmarked 2,400+ leases across the Permian. The average mineral owner signs a deal worth 23% less than fair market. Multiply across 30 years and it's a six-figure mistake. We're the antibody.

23%Avg under-market signing
$148KAvg owner loss / 30-yr lease
2,400+Leases benchmarked
100%Symmetric data — both sides
Live Negotiation View — Sample Tract

This is what every owner sees, in real time, as offers come in.

Sec 22, Blk 38, T-2-S — Midland County, TX

160.00 NMA · Smith Family Trust · Title status: CLEAR · Active drilling within 2 mi: 4 wells
Permian Basin Core3 active offers Median comp $2,150/acWolfcamp A/B + Spraberry
78
Top Offer FDS

3 Active Offers — Side by Side

Auto-refreshed · last 14 days

Permian Resources

78
FDS
$2,400/ac
Royalty25.0%
Bonus total$384,000
Primary term3 yrs
DeductionsNone
Pugh clauseVert + horiz
Cont. drilling180 days
Counter →

Diamondback Energy

71
FDS
$2,150/ac
Royalty25.0%
Bonus total$344,000
Primary term3 yrs
DeductionsNone
Pugh clauseVertical only
Cont. drilling120 days
Review

Centennial Land Co.

48
FDS
$1,500/ac
Royalty22.0%
Bonus total$240,000
Primary term5 yrs
DeductionsYes — gas
Pugh clauseNone
Cont. drilling365 days
Decline?

Where the top offer sits in the market

Last 90 days · 5 mi radius
Bonus per net mineral acre
$1,000$1,500$2,000$2,500$3,000+
Comp distribution (47 nearby leases)
$1.0K$1.5K$2.0K$2.5K$3.0K

Recent comparable leases (verified)

Date / Source
Tract / Operator / Terms
Bonus
2026-04-12
County rec.
Sec 23 Blk 38 → Permian Res. · 25% · 3yr · 80 NMA
$2,500
2026-04-03
Owner-disclosed
Sec 21 Blk 38 → Diamondback · 25% · 3yr · 160 NMA
$2,250
2026-03-28
County rec.
Sec 14 Blk 38 → Permian Res. · 25% · 3yr · 240 NMA
$2,400
2026-03-19
Owner-disclosed
Sec 22 Blk 39 → EOG · 22.5% · 3yr · 80 NMA
$1,950
2026-03-11
County rec.
Sec 27 Blk 38 → Centennial · 22% · 5yr · 80 NMA
$1,500
2026-02-28
County rec.
Sec 12 Blk 38 → Pioneer · 25% · 3yr · 120 NMA
$2,300

Clause-by-Clause Analyzer — Permian Resources offer

+12 FDS from clauses
Royalty: 25.0% — at top of market
25% is the high end of current Permian comps. Lock this in.
+5 FDS
Top tier
No post-production deductions
Operator pays gathering, treating, dehydration, transportation costs. Worth $40K+ over the life of a typical Permian well.
+8 FDS
Major win
Pugh clause: vertical + horizontal
If operator drills only Wolfcamp A, you get back deeper formations, plus any acreage outside the producing unit.
+6 FDS
Excellent
Continuous drilling: 180 days
Industry standard 120–180. Top quartile is 90. Negotiable target: 120 days.
+1 FDS
Negotiable
Primary term: 3 years
Standard. With 4 wells drilling within 2 mi, you have leverage to negotiate 2 years.
0 FDS
Negotiable
Bonus payment: in escrow at signing
$384,000 wired to neutral escrow. Eliminates the #1 wire fraud vector in mineral leasing.
+2 FDS
Standard
Force majeure clause: broad
As drafted, "market conditions" qualifies as force majeure — operator could pause production indefinitely if oil prices drop. Demand narrowing: weather, regulatory, mechanical only.
-3 FDS
FIX THIS
Most-favored-nation clause: present
If Permian Res. signs another owner in your section at better terms within 12 mo, you automatically get the upgraded terms. Rare and valuable.
+4 FDS
Rare upside
Surface use: silent
Lease doesn't restrict surface disruption. If you own surface, demand SUA addendum.
N/A
Severance check
📋 Clause Score Total: 78 / 100. Negotiate force majeure narrowing + tighten continuous drilling to push to ~88 FDS — top decile in the basin.

Negotiation Thread — Permian Resources

Every message, every counter, every revision — captured permanently. No back-channel handshakes.

Permian Resources · Land ManagerApr 22, 2026 · 09:14
Initial offer for Sec 22 Blk 38 — 160 NMA. Standard Permian terms.
$2,000/ac22% royalty3 yr termFDS 58
You · via Landlock AI CoachApr 22, 2026 · 11:02
Counter — Comps within 5mi over last 90 days median $2,150/ac, top quartile $2,400+. 25% royalty achievable. Requesting Pugh + no deductions.
$2,500/ac25% royalty2 yr term+ Pugh + No deductions
Permian Resources · Land ManagerApr 24, 2026 · 14:48
Revised offer attached. Meet at $2,400 with full Pugh and no deductions. Need 3 yr primary — drilling queue is loaded.
$2,400/ac25% royalty3 yr term+ Pugh + No deductionsFDS 78
The Fair Deal Score

One number that tells you if the offer is fair. Backed by 12 weighted dimensions.

The Fair Deal Score (FDS) is Landlock's proprietary signature score — a 0–100 fairness rating applied to every offer. Operators see the same score we show owners. It cuts both ways by design.

78
Sample FDS
Score breakdown
Bonus vs comps
88/100
Royalty %
100/100
Primary term
60/100
Deductions
100/100
Pugh clause
95/100
Cont. drilling
55/100
Force majeure
30/100
MFN clause
100/100
Surface use
50/100
Operator track record
92/100
Payment / escrow
100/100
Title risk
80/100

The score is asymmetric on purpose.

A "good" lease isn't just about price. The bonus check is one-time. The clauses last 30 years. So we weight clauses that compound — deductions, Pugh, continuous drilling, force majeure — heavier than headline price.

90–100Excellent — top decile
75–89Good — at or above market
60–74Fair — negotiable
40–59Below market — push back
0–39Exploitative — DO NOT SIGN

Every offer accepted on Landlock displays its FDS publicly. Over time, operators with poor FDS averages will be visibly priced out. The market self-corrects.

The Manifesto

The Mineral Owner's Bill of Rights

Every owner on Landlock is protected by these eight non-negotiable rights. We enforce them in code, in contract, and in the open.

  1. The Right to Know. You see every comparable lease within 5 miles, every operator's history, every clause's market context — before you ever sign.
  2. The Right to a Fair Deal Score. Every offer scored against the same transparent rubric. No exceptions.
  3. The Right to AI Representation. Our AI Coach works only for you. Never represents operators. Free, forever.
  4. The Right to Title Truth. Your title gets a real, attorney-of-record signed opinion at our expense — even if you never lease.
  5. The Right to Safe Money. Bonus payments flow through neutral escrow. Wire fraud loss is on us.
  6. The Right to Negotiation Privacy. Your tract, deeds, offers — invisible to the public unless you opt in.
  7. The Right to a Permanent Record. Every message, counter, and revision archived immutably.
  8. The Right to Walk Away. Seven-day rescission. One-click data export. Account deletion any time.
For Operators

Transparency cuts both ways. That's a feature.

A high FDS isn't a tax — it's a trust signal. Operators who consistently land 80+ FDS get higher acceptance, lower drilling-delay risk, and a public reputation premium.

  • Higher acceptance rates. Owners say yes faster when the score validates.
  • Lower drilling-delay risk. Pre-scored leases are pre-cleared on title.
  • Public reputation premium. Top-FDS operators win the next-tract decision.
  • Faster cycle times. Median lease-to-close is 8 days vs. 47 days.
  • Lower legal review cost. Standardized, pre-scored clauses = rubber-stamp GC.
For Landmen

The best landmen will love this. The bottom-quartile won't.

Landmen who hunt comps, build relationships, and craft fair deals get 10× more productive on Landlock. The platform handles the title, the data, the clause analysis — they handle the negotiation.

Landmen whose only edge is information asymmetry are no longer competitive. Good. The market should price them out.

Landman Partner Program →
The Era of the Asymmetric Deal Is Over

Pick the side that respects your data.

Owners get the dashboard. Operators get the rail. Both sides get the same Fair Deal Score.