Seniority

Seniority is the ranking of rival interests in the same ground, the earlier ahead of the later. For mining claims it asks which of two overlapping locations came first, and whether that location was good when made. Federal law has no single seniority rule for mining claims; it ties particular rights to dates and says who decides.

Who decides

BLM's regulations state: "The Bureau of Land Management does not intervene in disputes between rival locators over possessory rights because Congress has provided for the resolution of these matters in local courts" (43 CFR 2091.1(b)). BLM Manual Section 3870 says the same: "Arguments over the right of possession (possessory rights) must be taken to the courts for direct resolution."

Where federal law ties rights to time

• Tunnel sites. Lode locations on the line of a tunnel "made by other parties after the commencement of the tunnel, and while the same is being prosecuted with reasonable diligence, shall be invalid" (30 U.S.C. 27). A lode mining claim on a blind vein found in the tunnel takes the tunnel site's date (43 CFR 3832.45(b)).
• Amendments. "An amended location notice or certificate relates back to the original location date" (43 CFR 3833.22(c)). In Ronald R. Graham (77 IBLA 174, 1983), the Interior Board of Land Appeals said an amended location "relates back to the date of the original location in the absence of adverse intervening rights," while "a relocation does not relate back."
• Relocation after missed work. Where required assessment work is not done, the ground is open to relocation "as if no location of the same had ever been made, provided that the original locators, their heirs, assigns, or legal representatives, have not resumed work upon the claim after failure and before such location" (30 U.S.C. 28).
• Land status. Each location is tested against the land's status on its own date. A mining claim located on land closed to mineral entry at that time is forfeited (43 CFR 3830.91(b)). See Open to Entry.

A date is not enough

An earlier date counts only if the earlier location holds up. A lode or placer mining claim "is not valid until you make a discovery within the boundaries of the claim" (43 CFR 3832.11(b)). Before discovery, protection against rivals rests on possession; see Pedis Possessio. A forfeited or void earlier mining claim outranks nothing.

The survey meaning

BLM's Glossary of Surveying and Mapping Terms uses "senior rights" for patents and surveys: "The first patent issued usually has the superior (senior) right or title regardless of the dates of the surveys." That concerns patented land, not rival unpatented mining claims.

Why it matters in mining claim research

Records supply the dates: location, amendment, and closure of each mining claim. They do not settle possession, discovery, or resumed work, which are facts for a court. A seniority analysis is a list of dates and the evidence behind each, not a ruling.