Constitutional Law Keyed to Feldman
Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon
ProfessorTodd Berman
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
This case is based on a bill of equity to prevent the Defendant, the Pennsylvania Coal Company, from mining under the Plaintiff’s, Mahon’s, property in such a way as to remove the supports and cause subsidence of the surface and of the house. The Plaintiff asserts that despite a deed executed by the Defendant which conveys the surface to the Plaintiffs, but reserves within the Defendant, the right to mine the subsurface, the Defendant’s rights to mine were taken away by the Pennsylvania Kohler Act of 1921 (“Kohler Act”). This law forbids the mining of coal in such a way as to cause the subsidence of any structure used for human habitation. Plaintiff sues to prevent such mining and the lower courts hold in favor of the Plaintiff.
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