Shared for information, with my name redacted for legal reasons.
Letters and Emails to and From Treaty Legal Representatives October 18th and 19th 2011
Letter
To: ************************ Belize City, Belize
From: ANDREW L. KRAMER, L.L.C.
ATTORNEY AT LAW Licensed in Louisiana & New York
201 St. Charles Avenue Suite 2504
New Orleans, LA 70170
Ph: 504.599.5623 Fax: 866.667.3890 Cell: 504.458.3456
www.kramerllc.com
akramer@kramerllc.com
Date: October 18, 2011
RE: Treaty Energy Corporation
**********:
Please be advised that I represent Treaty Energy Corporation (Treaty) and have been provided your email dated October 17, 2011 to Brian D. Luczywo, Vice President and International Comptroller of Treaty, to which we respond. As an initial matter, Treaty is under no obligation to allow you to post on its Facebook page. Indeed, Treaty has the absolute right to control its Facebook page and can remove anyone connected to the page at any time and for any reason. More importantly, your recent post on Treaty’s Facebook page that was removed was false and defamatory. Not only did your post violate Facebook’s Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, it is actionable under Louisiana law. Therefore, if you do not immediately cease and desist from further attempts to post defamatory comments on Treaty’s Facebook page or if you attempt to submit false claims to a governmental agency, we will promptly pursue all available legal action against you.
Sincerely,
/s/ Andrew Kramer
Andrew L. Kramer
Response to Treaty Letter by Email
From: **************** (**********@ymail.com)
To:akramer@kramerllc.com; areid@treatyenergy.com
Date / Time: Wednesday, 19 October 2011, 07:27 GMT-6
Subject: Treaty Energy Corporation Letter of October 18th 2011
Dear Sirs,
Thank you for your letter dated October 18th. I was surprised to get the attached letter from an attorney and not from someone on Treaty Energy Corporation's (TREATY's) technical staff.
I am sorry that you construed what I had posted on your Facebook site as false and defamatory. In my view, with the exception of one point I now know is false (see below), it is not false nor defamatory.
My intention of the posting was to provide technical advice and ask genuine technical questions about TREATY's future drilling operation in Belize. I am supportive of onshore oil drilling in Belize, outside protected areas, as long as it is performed using International Petroleum Industry standards as required by Belize's Petroleum Act of 2000.
As a voluntary Independent Oil Industry Advisor in Belize many third parties (including NGOs, local people and more recently TREATY shareholders) have approach me for my advice about the oil exploration and production process and more recently about TREATY's activity specifically. However one problem we are all having is getting any technical responses from TREATY.
So back to my posting - which is reproduced verbatim (and my objective analysis of it as either true or false and defamatory shown after each statement in brackets):
Thanks for the update photo (Complimentary - neither false nor defamatory)
The sign may be up but the rest of photo shows only a marked lack of readiness to drill (True - neither false nor defamatory - a visit to your well site yesterday shows that the drilling rig, a small bulldozer, a truck and a diesel engine/generator are just 'parked' there with one security guard and his tent. So this equipment is not ready to drill and the remaining equipment you need to drill is not yet onsite)
The concession Treaty are drilling on belongs to Princess Petroleum - their name should be on the sign too (True - neither false nor defamatory).
This is Treaty Energy's first exploration well and first operation outside the USA. So:
1) the drill pad looks too small (False - Your photo shows a too small wellsite but having visited your site yesterday, I admit it is not too small - but it still looks a little boggy in places)
2) the recently purchased rig is not yet upgraded to be suitable for oil exploration wells (the additional drilling and well control equipment required before spudding the well - including BOPs - must still be enroute thru Mexico) (True - neither false nor defamatory)
3) You haven't prepared a sump and set conductor pipe to help contain unintentional spillages from the well drilling operation (True - neither false nor defamatory)
The assertion in your letter that what I posted is false and defamatory is a serious allegation against me, which is not supported by my objective analysis above, so I would be grateful if you would back it up with:
1) An email showing which aspects of my posting are false and/or defamatory in your view
2) A copy of Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities which you allege that my posting violated
I await your response to the above with interest.
I have not yet involved any attorney's in this matter - and I hope that situation can continue dependent on your response to the above.
Email
From: Samuel Whitley <swhitley@whitley-llp.com>
To: ************@ymail.com
Date / Time: Wed, 19 Oct 2011 at 14:56
Subject: Treaty Energy Corporation
Dear **********:
Our Firm represents Treaty Energy Corporation. Brian Luczywo at Treaty forwarded to us your e-mails regarding Treaty's deletion of certain of your comments from the Company's Facebook page. In these e-mails, you also threaten to notify the Securities and Exchange Commission about certain statements which you believe are misleading if the Company does not reinstate your ability to post on Treaty's Facebook page. Treaty asked me to respond to your communications.
First, your threat to notify the SEC regarding Treaty, in exchange for consideration (i.e. reinstating your ability to post on Treaty's Facebook page) constitutes blackmail, which is a federal criminal offense. As a result, you may wish to reconsider this threat.
Second, the Company at all times has been forthright with its shareholders regarding all material Company matters, and therefore management is confident that any SEC inquiry would not result in any material consequences for the Company.
Third, the Company has no legal obligation to permit you to post to its Facebook page. In addition, the bullying, harassment or intimidation of any user is a violation of Facebook’s terms of service.
However, notwithstanding these points, we are happy to consider and distribute through the proper channels within the Company any comments or concerns you have regarding the Company’s policies or practices. Please send these to us for proper handling.
Thank you.
Samuel E. Whitley
Partner -- Corporate and Securities Law
Whitley LLP Attorneys at Law
11767 Katy Freeway, Suite 425
Houston, Texas 77079
(281) 206 - 0433 Direct
(281) 206 - 0432 Ext. 301
(866) 512 - 7794 Toll Free Facsimile
