Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendants’ motion for summary judgment in plaintiffs' action, alleging conversion and trespass under circumstances where defendants-neighbors of plaintiffs used vacuum pump to extract valuable coal methane gas from underlying abandoned coal mine. Dist. Ct. held that under rule of capture, plaintiffs could not proceed on their claims because they did not own gas, which could not be owned until it was extracted. Rule of capture allows owner to extract gas from owner’s land, even though said gas had migrated from neighbor’s land. Also, Ct. of Appeals rejected plaintiffs’ contention that defendants’ use of vacuum pump violated their correlative rights because it caused damages, where: (1) Ill. Dept. of Natural Resources had issued permit to defendants to use vacuum pump to extract gas; and (2) use of vacuum pump does not negate rule of capture.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Conversion