Arthur and Virginia Thornsbury v. Cabot Oil & Gas

In this appeal from the Circuit Court of McDowell County, we are asked to examine an order granting summary judgment to a defendant oil and gas developer. The circuit court found that the defendant was immune from liability for damages to the surface of a tract of land owned by the plaintiffs because of an exculpatory clause in a 1941 deed of the tract to a predecessor of the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs, however, assert that the defendant is liable for breaching a subsequent 2006 written contract that superseded the 1941 deed.

Upon appeal by the plaintiffs, we reverse the circuit court’s order…