Humble Oil & Refining Company v. Williams

• Decision Date: 25 October 1967
• Docket Number: No. B--273,B--273
• Citation: 420 S.W.2d 133
• Court: Texas Supreme Court
• Parties: HUMBLE OIL & REFINING COMPANY, Petitioner, v. Johnnie D. WILLIAMS, Respondent.

Page 133

420 S.W.2d 133

HUMBLE OIL & REFINING COMPANY, Petitioner, v. Johnnie D. WILLIAMS, Respondent.

No. B--273.

Supreme Court of Texas.

Oct. 25, 1967.

Frank L. Heard, Jr., Houston, for petitioner.

Tucker, Senff & Adams, Nacogdoches, for respondent.

GREENHILL, Justice.

This is a suit by the owner of the surface of a tract of land, Johnnie D. Williams, against the Humble Oil & Refining Company, the owner of a valid oil and gas lease, for damages to the surface. Humble's lease had been obtained from Williams' predecessor in title, and Williams bought the land subject to the lease. Williams alleged a willful trespass, and his recovery is based on an alleged use by Humble of more of the property than was reasonably necessary for its operations. Trial was to the court without a jury. Williams recovered a judgment for $550, and Humble appealed. The Court of Civil Appeals at Tyler affirmed. 413 S.W.2d 413.

The Humble lease, among other things, gave it the right to enter upon the land for the purpose of drilling, exploring, mining, producing and removing oil from the property. It also authorized Humble to build roads upon the premises. The evidence set out below is relied upon by Williams to show a trespass to his land; i.e., to support the implied finding of fact by the trial court that Humble used more of the land than was reasonably necessary for the above authorized purposes.

The statement of facts is relatively brief. The land involved is a 79.06 acre tract located approximately fifteen miles northwest of Nacogdoches. Humble drilled a well on the property and had constructed a road across the property from a gravel county road to the well site. Williams testified that the road was about 2,300 feet long and 30 feet wide. It had a gravel base but had been 'black-topped'; i.e., it had some sort of an oil based surface over the gravel. The road was built up about twenty inches, perhaps two feet, above the surrounding land. It ran in a generally northerly direction from the county road and some fifty feet from Williams' side fence. It had a slight curve before coming to the well site. Williams drew a diagram of his land and the road on a blackboard in the courtroom; and he referred to places and directions as 'down here,' 'over there,' and 'this direction here.' No map is in the record, and we are unable definitely to relate the testimony to the location of the road and other items on the ground.

There was evidence that the road had been built in the general direction that Williams previously had used to get from the county road to the area of the well site. He said his tire tracks could have been seen if one had looked before it rained.

Pictures in evidence showed some small pine trees which bordered on an area of some large pine trees. Williams had not planted the trees; they were there when he purchased the property. Williams testified that Humble, in building the road, cut or pushed over some of the smaller trees, trees of a diameter of two inches or less. He counted 315 such trees, and testified that they were worth $2.67 each. Pictures introduced by Humble show the road going through the trees.

Williams testified also that there is an area off of the road which Humble's trucks had used for the purpose of parking and turning around. He said the trucks had made ruts up to a foot deep in such parking and turning area.

Williams did not live on the land, but he had two chicken houses there. He also used the land for grazing and had fertilized it. He testified that the road interfered with his working of the pasture; that the use of his mechanized equipment was impaired by the existence of the road. He...