Southwestern Energy Wins Major PA Case re Rule of Capture/Trespass

We believe this is the end of the legal road for the Briggs family's lawsuit against Southwestern Energy (now part of Expand Energy) in a case that centers on whether hydraulic fracturing constitutes a trespass if it forces gas from a neighbor's property, even if no fluid enters that neighbor's specific property layer. In January 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in favor of Southwestern, retaining the “rule of capture” in the Keystone State (see HUGE NEWS: PA Supreme Court Keeps ‘Rule of Capture’ for Fracking). In 2022, the Briggs family filed an amended complaint, call it “Briggs 2,” along the same lines, alleging that Southwestern’s drilling and fracking on a neighboring property had intruded (“trespassed”) under the property line, draining gas from the Briggs property and injecting PFAS “forever chemicals” under their land (see Briggs v SWN Rule of Capture/Trespass Court Case Resurrected).

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