Opinion ID: 2419928
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Were Questions Immaterial or Defective?

Text: The jury's answers to the drainage questions may only be disregarded if they have no support in the evidence or if they are immaterial. See Spencer, 876 S.W.2d at 157; C. & R. Transport, Inc. v. Campbell, 406 S.W.2d 191, 194 (Tex. 1966). A question is immaterial when it should not have been submitted, it calls for a finding beyond the province of the jury, such as a question of law, or when it was properly submitted but has been rendered immaterial by other findings. See Spencer, 876 S.W.2d at 157. A question is defective, however, if it plainly attempts to request a finding on a recognized cause of action, but does so improperly. See id. The jury found that Southeastern failed to protect the individual leases from substantial drainage, and there was evidence that Well Nos. 4, 5, and 6 had drained the leases before the unit was formed. Breach of the duty to protect against substantial drainage is a well-established cause of action and the jury's findings were clearly material to this issue. See id. The lessors never abandoned their claim that the leases were drained, but simply requested an improper submission of the issue to the jury. The failure to include instructions confining the jury's consideration to pre-pooling drainage renders the questions defective, not immaterial. See id. Thus, provided that Southeastern properly objected, it is entitled to a new trial on the drainage issues. See id. The lessors respond that Southeastern waived error by not objecting to submission of the drainage issues. Our review of the record, however, indicates that Southeastern preserved error by timely and plainly making the trial court aware of its complaint and obtaining a ruling. See State Dept. of Highways & Pub. Transp. v. Payne, 838 S.W.2d 235, 241 (Tex.1992). Southeastern made the trial court aware of its complaint at the very beginning of the trial, when it moved to bifurcate the issues of bad-faith pooling and drainage. During the hearing and the rehearing of its motion, Southeastern urged that it need[ed] an answer to the unit question to know how to present damages to the jury. It even responded to the trial court's request for a proposed charge with a detailed explanation of the need to segregate the claims: If the jury finds that Southeastern pooled the leases in good faith, [the lessors] are not entitled to any damages for bad-faith pooling or drainage after the designation of the unit. The sole remaining question, with regard to [the lessors'] claims, would be whether they were entitled to any drainage damages prior to the formation of the unit.... A proper issue would be as follows: Do you find that any of the Landowners' leases suffered substantial drainage between their effective date and December 15, 1993, when the W.C. Leveridge No. 5 Gas Unit was formed? Although Southeastern's objections at this stage of the trial would alone be insufficient to preserve the issue, Southeastern reurged its prior objections during the charge conference: We object to the submission, however, of the entire Question 3 and 4A and B because the Court should first obtain a finding as to whether or not the unit is in good faith or bad faith formed and whether or not the unit is valid.    Therefore, we would request that the Court submit only Questions 1 and 2 in a bifurcated jury proceeding and then submit any question about drainage and other issues after that. The point being, the issues of bad faith pooling and substantial drainage overlap and cannot reasonably be submitted to the jury in one charge. If the unit is formed in good faith, there can be no finding of a failure to protect from drainage after the formation of the unit. We conclude that Southeastern properly preserved error on this issue.