Elliff v. Texon Drilling Co.
Supreme Court of Texas
210 S.W.2d 558 (Tex. 1948)
Relevant factsFree
Texon's (defendant's) well on neighboring land, sharing an underground gas-and-distillate reservoir with the Elliffs' (plaintiffs') well, blew out due to Texon's negligence, blasting reservoir gas, distillate, and oil into the air and expanding a crater that destroyed the Elliffs' own well; the Elliffs sued for negligence, and though the trial court ruled for them, the Texas Court of Civil Appeals reversed based on the law of capture.
IssueFree
Whether the law of capture absolves a drilling company's liability for wasted gas and distillate when the gas and distillate was drained from a neighboring well before it was wasted.