Court Opinion

ID: 9538978
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 07:44:59.640155+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:58:21.883010
License: Public Domain

ALMA WILSON, Justice.
Lester and Myrtle Briscoe own and reside on a 146 acre farm in Grady County. A portion of the farm is devoted to wheat and alfalfa. The Briscoes [appellees] also maintain a small cattle operation on their farm. Grazing areas include love, bermuda and native grasses.
On January 23, 1976, the appellees executed an oil and gas lease to the appellant, Harper Oil Company [Harper]. Pursuant to the terms of the lease, Harper made entry upon the appellees’ farm in January, 1980. Harper commenced taking surveys for the location of a drilling site, and shortly thereafter unilaterally selected the site. The well drilled by Harper on the site proved to be a dry hole and Harper abandoned drilling operations in July of 1980. The dry hole was plugged some eight months later. Closure of the reserve pit and further clean up operations on the drilling site were commenced by Harper in May, 1981, one month after appellees instituted this action.
On April 17, 1981, the appellees filed their petition, setting forth three separate causes of action. The first cause of action is founded on contract. The appellees asserted that pursuant to the terms of the oil and gas lease under which Harper entered the subject premises, Harper contracted to pay for damages caused by their operation to growing crops, and that Harper caused damages to growing crops.
The appellees’ second cause of action is couched in terms of nuisance. They alleged that by reason of the unreasonable acts of Harper in conducting its oil and gas operations on their land they have been subjected to unreasonable inconvenience, annoyance and interference with the enjoyment of their land for agricultural, grazing and residential purposes. They also alleged subsequent loss of portions of the farm for agricultural and grazing use. Their prayer for relief on this cause of action encompasses damages for both temporary (abatable) and permanent (unabata-ble) injury.
In their third cause of action, the appel-lees sought punitive damages by reason of Harper’s alleged willful, oppressive and grossly negligent acts in disregard of the fertility and productivity of the soil.
The case was tried to a jury. After hearing all the evidence over a period of several days, the jury was permitted to personally view the premises in question. The jury returned a verdict for the appel-lee-landowners in the aggregate sum of $42,975. Categorically, the jury awarded $1,600 for damage to growing crops resulting from Harper’s drilling operations; $10,-500 as damages for annoyance and inconvenience or using more land than reasonably necessary for a longer time than necessary during drilling operations; $24,500 the cost of restoring abatable areas around the well site; and, $6,375.00 as damages for permanent injury to the appellees’ farmland.
The trial court entered the jury verdict and awarded the appellees an attorney’s fee. Harper appealed. In a divided opinion, the Court of Appeals reversed the jury verdict and remanded the case for a new trial on the theory that appellees’ recovery of both permanent and temporary damages constitutes a double recovery. We now *36review, by certiorari, the opinion of the Court of Appeals.
The sole issue challenged on certiorari concerns the propriety of the trial court’s instructions permitting the jury to return a verdict for damages to include the cost of repairing temporary abatable injuries to the drilling well site, as well as damages for permanent unabatable injury to appel-lees’ farmland. We find no error that would require reversal of the jury verdict.
The damages in controversy relate exclusively to appellees’ second cause of action brought on the theory of private nuisance created or maintained by Harper. It is well established that damages resulting from an oil and gas operation can be recovered in an action brought on a nuisance theory. Sunray D-X Oil Company v. Brown, 477 P.2d 67 (Okl.1970); Tenneco Oil Company v. Allen, 515 P.2d 1391 (Okl.1973). Nuisance, as defined at 50 O.S. 1981 § 1, consists in unlawfully doing an act, or omitting to perform a duty, which act or omission annoys, injures, or endangers the comfort, repose, health or safety of others; or, in any way renders other persons insecure in life, or in the use of property. Thus, the term “nuisance” signifies in law such a use of property or such a course of conduct irrespective of actual trespass against others, or of malicious or actual criminal intent, which transgresses the just restrictions upon use or conduct which the proximity of other persons or property imposes. It is a class of wrongs which arises from an unreasonable, unwarranted, or unlawful use by a person or entity of property lawfully possessed, but which works an obstruction or injury to the right of another. “Damage” or “injury”, as ordinarily used in nuisance cases is the result of the nuisance and permanent, as well as temporary damages, may be recovered for the maintenance of a temporary nuisance. City of Holdenville v. Kiser, 195 Okl. 189, 156 P.2d 363 (1945). The rule of damages in any given case brought on the theory of nuisance is determined by whether the injury suffered is permanent or temporary, rather than whether the cause of injury is permanent or temporary. Sunray D-X, supra. Accordingly, damages adjudged in an action predicated on a nuisance theory may include temporary and permanent injury to land. Tenneco, supra. Temporary damages in the context of an oil and gas nuisance are by definition abatable. Damages reasonably incapable of abatement are permanent.
According to the evidence in the present case, the jury could reasonably determine that the acts complained of by the appellees constituted a private nuisance. The fact that a person or corporation has authority to do certain acts does not give the right to do such acts in a way constituting an unnecessary interference with the rights of others. A license, permit or franchise to do a certain act cannot protect the licensee who abuses the privilege by erecting or maintaining a nuisance. The reasonableness or necessity of the acts complained of are for the jury to decide.
Likewise, evidence reasonably tending to prove essential damage directly or indirectly by permissible inference is sufficient to sustain a jury verdict. Peppers Refining Co. v. Spivey, 285 P.2d 228 (Okl.1955). In this respect, the appellees presented evidence tending to show that the entrance unilaterally chosen by Harper unnecessarily encompassed passage through a large portion of the farm, thereby cutting the grazing area and precluding the use of approximately 25 acres for grazing and agricultural purposes; that Harper’s employees drove and parked their heavy equipment and vehicles off the roadways and location; and, caused to be drained from the well head and reserve pit oil and other deleterious substances, and allowed these substances to drain in to the appellees’ terraces and creeks. The appel-lees further testified that Harper created unnecessary noise, annoyance and inconvenience; that Harper refused to fence the well site area causing the appellees to erect a fence around the well site and road area at their own expense for the sake of keeping cattle off the road and out of the drilling area; that appellees were forced to *37build another roadway to reach their pasture behind the well site; that Harper cut the terraces of the appellees and did not repair them, causing flooding and erosion; and appellees had to sell cattle early due to loss of pasture. Finally, appellees testified that after the completion of drilling activities, Harper refused and failed to timely empty and close the reserve pit; failed to remove the drilling pad and roadway area; failed to reclaim the pit, pad and roadway areas for agricultural and grazing purposes, and failed to properly dispose of or properly bury drilling mud, trash debris and other substances.
Appellees’ soil and conservation expert testified concerning resultant drainage problems and erosion of the soil, permanently damaging the productivity and fertility of the land. In his opinion, it would cost some $91,000 to completely restore the land, but that for approximately $34,000 the excess area taken could be cleaned up to the point that appellees could perhaps use it. Three different witnesses testified that the value of the farm had decreased as a result of the oil and gas activities of Harper. The testimony reflected that the value of the farm had decreased by $36,-500, $29,282, and $20,433 respectively.
We find the evidence reasonably tends to prove essential damage to sustain the jury verdict. While the instructions failed to state that in no event shall the combined award of temporary and permanent damages for injury to the land exceed the decreased fair market value of the land, such error, if that it be, was here harmless in nature. The jury awarded the sum of $24,500 for costs of restoring the temporary abatable injury to the well site, plus the sum of $6,375 for permanent una-batable injury to the farm. The combined sum of the temporary and permanent damages, $30,875, does not exceed the evidence reflecting that the value of the farm had decreased up to $36,500.
We likewise find that the trial court committed no error in awarding attorney’s fees to the appellees pursuant to 12 O.S. 1981 § 940 A:
“In any civil action to recover damages for the negligent or willful injury to property and any other incidental costs related to such action, the prevailing party shall be allowed reasonable attorney’s fees, court costs and interest to be set by the court and to be taxed and collected as other costs of the action.”
The action now on review was founded upon the civil theory of nuisance. The appellees sought to recover damages for unreasonable injury to their land by reason of Harper’s unintentional negligent acts and/or Harper’s intentional willful acts. Likewise, it is clear that the appellees prevailed below. Finally, the trial court followed established guidelines in assessing the amount of the award. See Oliver’s Sports Center, Inc. v. National Standard Insurance Company, 615 P.2d 291 (Okl.1980); State ex rel. Burk v. City of Oklahoma City, 598 P.2d 659 (Okl.1979). Testimony by an experienced oil and gas attorney established that a reasonable attorney’s fee in cases similar to the case at bar would be approximately $21,800. The evidence further established that a total of 165V2 attorney hours were expended on the case; that the hourly rate normally charged by counsel was $100 per hour in-court and $75 per hour out-of-court; that the customary fee arrangement in a case of this type would amount to 50% of the recovery. Based upon the hourly compensation computed at $12,175 plus a 50% bonus calculated upon the hourly rate, See Oliver Sports, supra, the trial court awarded an attorney’s fee in the amount of $18,262.00. We find no error.
The opinion of the Court of Appeals is vacated and the trial court’s entry of judgment on jury verdict for landowners is reinstated.
DOOLIN, Y.C.J., and LAVENDER, HARGRAVE and KAUGER, JJ., concur.
SIMMS, C.J., and HODGES, OPALA and SUMMERS, JJ., dissent.