Penman v. Jones

Citations

• 256 Pa. 416
• 100 A. 1043
• 1917 Pa. LEXIS 630

Syllabus

<p>Conveyances — Coal lands — Sale of surface — -Reservation of right to mine without liability for surface support — Surface support— Nature of right — Easement—Mines and mining — Deeds—Construction.</p> <p>1. The owner of the Surface of coal lands is entitled to the absolute support of the land, not as an easement or right depending upon a supposed grant, but as a proprietary right at common law.</p> <p>2. In the absence of an express waiver or the use of words from which the intention to waive clearly appears, the grantee of minerals takes the estate subject to the burden of surface support. Such right is not to be taken away by mere implication from language which does not necessarily import such a result.</p> <p>3. Where the owner of coal land conveys the surface, reserving the right to remove the coal without liability for damage to the surface, it may retain or dispose of the right so’ reserved, as it sees fit, but where it subsequently conveys the coal without expressly granting such right, the grantee of the coal does not acquire it.</p> <p>4. A coal company conveyed the surface of coal land, reserving the right to remove the coal without liability for damage to the surface. Subsequently it conveyed the coal to a steel company but did not expressly transfer the right to remove the coal without liability for surface support; and thereafter made a further conveyance to the steel company confirming title to the coal “together with all the rights of the said coal company to mine and remove the said coal ......by any process incident to the business of mining.” The coal company later conveyed to a trust company all its interest of any kind in the said real estate, and the trust company in turn conveyed such right to the plaintiff, the successor in title of the original grantee of the surface. Defendant agreed to purchase from the plaintiff the lot in question, provided the plaintiff had the right to surface support. Defendant refused to accept the deed, contendi