United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia
McEvoy, et al.
v.
Diversified Energy and EQT
Case No. 5:22-CV-00171-JPB-JPM
From 2022 to 2024, did you have an interest in land in WV, OH, KY, PA, VA, or TN, with a Diversified Energy oil and gas well on that land?
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There is a settlement of a lawsuit regarding Diversified Energy’s plugging of such wells over a 10-year period, and regarding former well owner EQT’s obligations.
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To be part of this settlement, you do not need to do anything. To exclude yourself from the settlement, you need to respond by February 18, 2025.
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A Federal Court authorized this Notice. This is not an advertisement, or a solicitation from a lawyer.
In this Action, Plaintiffs alleged that Diversified and EQT engaged in improper transfers of certain oil and gas wells and that Diversified wrongfully utilized land by failing to plug certain non-producing wells, among other things.
Diversified and EQT challenged Plaintiffs’ claims. Diversified and EQT maintained that the transfer of wells was proper and approved by state regulatory agencies, and that Diversified was complying with state law and consent orders in methodically plugging wells. The Judge has not decided who was right.
The parties reached a Settlement that is detailed below. You may be a member of the group of people affected, called the “Settlement Class.” Settlement Class Members are persons and entities that owned or leased—from July 8, 2022, to November 4, 2024—a surface interest in land in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Virginia, or Tennessee, with a Diversified Energy oil and gas well on that land. This Notice gives you a summary of the terms of the proposed Settlement Agreement, explains what rights Settlement Class Members have, and helps Settlement Class Members make informed decisions about what action to take.
| Options | More information about each option |
| Do Nothing | Be a Settlement Class Member, with the opportunity to have non-producing wells plugged over the next 10 years. Give up certain legal rights resolved by the Settlement, including the right to sue Diversified until January 1, 2034, for failing to plug your well. Diversified and EQT contest that citizens have a right to bring any such lawsuit. |
| Opt Out | You will not be a Settlement Class Member, and you will not release claims (to the extent they existed) against Diversified and EQT. |
| Object | To object, you must remain in the Settlement Class and explain to the Court any specific disagreements you have with the proposed settlement. |