TO: Members of the Advisory Board of the
 International Oil and Gas Educational Center

FROM: Pat Martin, Chair


                 I am very pleased to tell you that the
Alamo [ http://www.thealamo.org/ ] and adjacent Alamo Hall
[ http://www.thealamo.org/map_nojs.html ] will be the venue for our annual 
Advisory Board reception and dinner on Wednesday, February 14, 2001.

 Our Annual Meeting of the Advisory Board will be conducted earlier that 
afternoon at the Hilton Palacio del Rio on San Antonio's River Walk [ 
http://hotx.com/rb/ ].  Details and an RSVP form about both the meeting and 
the dinner that evening will be mailed to you in early January.  February 14 
is also Valentines Day, so mark your calendar now to attend the Annual 
Meeting and plan to bring your spouse or guest with you to our very special 
dinner event at the Alamo that night.

 I am equally pleased to announce that the recipient of the IOGEC's 2001 John 
Rogers Award -- and featured speaker at the award ceremony -- will be Enron 
Chairman and CEO, Ken Lay.  The award will be presented at a special hosted 
reception and dinner ceremony on Thursday, February 15, 2001 at the unique 
Institute of Texan Cultures
[ http://www.texancultures.utsa.edu/main/ ].

 Our Advisory Board meeting and festivities as usual immediately precede our 
annual Institute on Oil and Gas Law and Taxation.  The 52d Annual Institute 
will be held Thursday-Friday, February 15-16, 2001, at the  Hilton Palacio 
del Rio
[http://www.hilton.com/hotels/SATPDHH/index.html;$sessionid$4UKQTPQAAADTBJ31AO
DSFFI?_requestid=10505 ] on the River Walk.  Institute Co-Chairs Bill 
Schwind, Brad Keithley and Dennis Grindinger have assembling an outstanding 
and innovative program, including:

 * optional multi-session segments on US Onshore, Federal/US Offshore, 
International, Environmental, Litigation and Emerging Issues,

 * presentations by top federal oil and gas officials, including the Chairman 
of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC),  the Director of the 
Minerals Management Service (MMS) and the Director of the Office of Foreign 
Asset Control (OFAC),

 * presentations by top state oil and gas officials, including  Commissioners 
of the Texas Railroad Commission and the Louisiana Office of Conservation and 
the Vice Chair of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission,

 * presentations by top law school faculty, including Professors Earnest E. 
Smith from the University of Texas, Bruce Kramer from Texas Tech University, 
Ira Shepard of the University of Houston and Martin J. McMahon of the 
University of Florida,

                               presentations by top oil and gas attorneys, 
including Williams Companies SVP and General Counsel Bill von Glahn, former 
Coastal Corp. General Counsel Mike Beatty and former EEX SVP and General 
Counsel and current IOGEC Vice Chair Janice Hartrick, and

 * tours of San Antonio and its historical sites for registrants' family and 
friends during the Institute.

The Institute materials will be provided to Institute registrants on CD as 
well as in the traditional notebook.  As they have been for 51 years, the 
papers by the Institute faculty will ultimately be edited and published by 
Matthew Bender & Company in its annual Proceedings of the Oil and Gas Law and 
Taxation Institute.

                 An Institute brochure with further information about the 
Institute, the Rogers Award ceremony and related events in San Antonio will 
be mailed to you shortly after Thanksgiving.

 I remind you that as a member of the Advisory Board of the IOGEC [ 
http://www.swlegal.org/iogec/ ], you are entitled to attend this cornucopia 
of professional, educational and social  events cost-free:

 *  the Advisory Board Annual Meeting on Wednesday afternoon,
 * the Advisory Board reception and dinner at the Alamo on Wednesday evening 
(you are invited to bring your spouse or guest to this special event without 
charge),
 * the John Rogers Award Reception and Dinner at the Institute of Texan 
Cultures on Thursday evening (tickets for your spouse or guest will be 
available for purchase), as well as
 * the entire Oil & Gas Law and Taxation Institute, including the two-day 
program and a hosted luncheon on Friday.

               The Institute is followed by a three-day weekend (Presidents 
Day is Monday, February 19, 2001), and San Antonio is Texas' top tourist 
destination for many good reasons, so I look forward to seeing you in 
February in San Antonio
[ http://www.sanantoniocvb.com/INDEXED.HTM ].

               Enjoy the Thanksgiving holidays.