Plainview Eli Sunday Plainview Eli Sunday Plainview Eli Sunday Plainview you your Every day, Eli Sunday Plainview Eli Sunday Plainview DRAAAIIINNNNAGE! boy across milkshake! [slurps] I drink it up! Westmoreland & Cambria Natural Gas Co. v. DeWit t Briggs v. Southwestern Energy Production, Briggs Briggs

• Does the rule of capture preclude any liability under the theories of trespass or conversion of natural gas, even if the natural gas originated under the appellants' property and was extracted by hydraulic fracturing?
• Does the rule of capture apply to the extraction of natural gas from under land owned by a third party through the process of hydraulic fracturing, so as to preclude any liability on the part of Southwestern under the theories trespass or conversion for natural gas extracted by Southwestern, even if said natural gas originated under the lands of appellants and was extracted from under appellants' land?

Young v. Ethyl, ^th Young Young Young Briggs

• First, the rule of capture cannot be used as an affirmative defense to a claim of trespass where hydraulic fracking is involved.
• Second, in order to succeed on a claim of trespass, a plaintiff must satisfy the elements of trespass as set forth in the court's decision. In the context of fracking, this would mean proof that the defendant knew or should have known that any one of the subsurface fractures, fracking fluid or fracking proppants entered onto the plaintiff's land.
• Third, with regard to causation, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant actually extracted gas from the plaintiff's land.
• Fourth, with regard to damages, the plaintiff must prove the value of the gas extracted.

Briggs Peter B. Lewis is a partner in the business and finance department at Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel. He focuses his practice on energy law. He has experience representing oil and gas producers, as well as coal companies,