Lightning Oil Co. v. Anadarko E&P Onshore LLC
Texas Court of Appeals
480 S.W.3d 628 (Tex. App. 2015)
Relevant factsFree
Lightning Oil Company (plaintiff) and Anadarko E&P Onshore LLC (defendant) owned adjacent mineral estates, while Briscoe Ranch owned the surface estate overlying Lightning's mineral estate. Briscoe Ranch gave Anadarko permission to site and drill a well on its surface land, passing through the subsurface to reach Anadarko's own adjacent mineral estate; Lightning objected and sued for trespass to prevent further drilling once Anadarko began. The trial court granted Anadarko summary judgment, and Lightning appealed.
IssueFree
Whether, under oil-and-gas law, a surface-estate owner controls the earth beneath the surface estate.