On June 11, 2013, the District Court for the Western
District of Pennsylvania remanded an action to quiet title to the Court of
Common Pleas for Beaver County. The dispute between the Plaintiff, William
Shychuck, and the Defendant Chesapeake Appalachia, arose out an action to quiet
title to the mineral and oil and gas rights on property owned by the Plaintiff.
The complaint asserted that Defendants attained interest in the oil and gas
rights through invalid assignments of an oil and gas lease.
The District Court remanded the case, despite the
Defendant’s arguments to the contrary, holding that the Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C.
§2201 provided the court with discretionary jurisdiction over the case. The
court explained that the issues involved in the case hinged solely on
Pennsylvania law because the arguments drawn by both parties relied on state
court opinions from the 19th century. Further, the court said
because the issues were to be resolved by Pennsylvania state laws, it would
decline resolving the questions in federal court.
Written by: Garrett Lent, Research Center
Written by: Garrett Lent, Research Center
Agricultural Law Resource and Reference Center
June 2013
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