Stroud v. Southwestern Energy

Plaintiffs filed suit alleging that SWE's fracking waste migrated onto their property. The district court granted summary judgment for SWE. The Eighth Circuit held that the district court properly imposed initial limits on discovery; the district court abused its discretion in excluding plaintiff's expert report because, although the expert's equation and report imperfectly described where the fracking waste spread, the methodology was scientifically valid, could properly be applied to the facts of this case, and thus was reliable to assist the trier of fact; and, even without the expert's opinion, plaintiffs presented evidence that could support a reasonable inference that the fracking waste migrated across their property line. Accordingly, the court reversed and remanded for further proceedings. View "Stroud v. Southwestern Energy" on Justia Law