US Federal court gives preliminary approval to $40M investor recovery in securities fraud class action. Smelling like Encana/Ovintiv, Cabot oil & Gas Corp (Coterra Energy Inc.) intentionally broke the law, contaminated water wells with methane *and* ripped off investors. Frac Motto: Profits over laws, water, life while we steal your money.

Is there anything frac’ers do legally besides promise, lie and boast?

I doubt Cottera will pay if the court gives final approval for this settlement. I expect the company will do the usual legal shit show frac dance and file for bankruptcy. A frac friendly judge (there are many) will let the company escape the bankruptcy, this settlement and other financial obligations, give the company a gift of a billion dollars or two pulled from his/her ass, another slithering company name change, a kindly slap and friendly lecture to rip off better next time (e.g. not get caught).

Robbins Geller Secures $40 Million for Cabot Oil Investors in Securities Fraud Suit by Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, July 9, 2024

A federal court gave preliminary approval to a $40 million investor recovery in a long-running securities fraud class action case against Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation (now Cottera Energy Inc.). United States District Court Judge Lee H. Rosenthal of the Southern District of Texas will hold a hearing to consider final approval of the settlement in October 2024.

The Case Against Cabot Oil

Cabot Oil develops and exploits oil and gas properties in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania and elsewhere. Investors alleged that Cabot and certain senior executives were aware that the company’s fracking and gas extraction operations violated environmental law and that Cabot failed to remediate faulty wells. Nevertheless, the lawsuit alleges that defendants misrepresented the company’s compliance with its environmental and remediation obligations.

In June 2020, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General charged Cabot with 15 criminal charges for repeated violations of environmental law, alleging Cabot had failed to repair faulty gas wells that were leaking methane into residential water supplies of communities surrounding Cabot’s wells. Following a grand jury presentment of charges finding that Cabot “knowingly” violated Pennsylvania laws, the Pennsylvania Attorney General stated that “Cabot took shortcuts that broke the law” and noted that the grand jury “found evidence of a company that placed profits over our laws.”

When Cabot disclosed receiving notices of violations from Pennsylvania regulators and when the criminal charges were announced, the price of Cabot common stock dropped from its artificially inflated price, allegedly causing significant damage to investors.

Investors Secure $40 Million Recovery

Delaware County Employees Retirement System represented the class of investors as lead plaintiff in the securities class action case against Cabot. The court denied Cabot’s motion to dismiss the case in late 2022.

“Delaware County Employees Retirement System’s leadership was the difference in this case. They provided the critical leadership and determination that resulted in a strong recovery for investors harmed by the alleged fraud,” said partner Darryl J. Alvarado, lead counsel for the investors.

Robbins Geller attorneys Darryl J. Alvarado, Kevin A. Lavelle, and Jack Abbey Gephart obtained this result for the class.

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Delaware County Employees Retirement System v. Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation, No. 4:21-cv-02045 (S.D. Tex.).

2024: Congress investigating Rusty Huston of Diversified Energy and his dirty deeds shell game: Buying up shitty wells, delaying their clean-up and cooking the books to make $millions.

2023: Judicial Frac-Farce, Dimock PA: Aquifer polluter Coterra (Cabot) rewarded, the harmed betrayed, to be refrac’d. 15 criminal charges, incl. 9 felonies, dropped to 1 misdemeanor, Judge J. Legg accepts Coterra admitting criminal responsibility while denying guilt; DEP un-bans Coterra from 9 sq mile gas-contaminated groundwater zone. Judge orders: 2 supply wells drilled (any safe groundwater there?); 10 mile water p/l that’ll take *5 yrs* to build (same was ordered a decade ago but pro-frac’ers killed it, and will again); bottled water for 75 years (after that?) or water treatment systems known to blow up (Bruce Jack and two industry gas-in-water testers were nearly killed by similar system pimped by Alberta gov’t in 2006).

2021: Legal Shit Show on Crack Continues: Cabot Oil v. Ray Kemble. 2008: Cabot contaminated Dimock drinking water. 2020: PA AG filed 15 criminal charges, including 9 felonies, against Cabot. 2021: Cabot becomes Coterra Energy. Changing names hides crimes (like Encana to Ovintiv).

2021: Pennsylvania Supreme Court gives gas industry big victory, Rules in favour of frac royalty cheaters (Anadarko, Chesapeake), Kills Attorney General’s anti-trust lawsuit. Jackie Root: “It just seems like ruling after ruling is coming down in favor of the oil and gas companies, handing them all the cards and all the money.”

2021: And, the winner is … drum roll … Chesapeake (and the new ombudsperson). Attorney General Josh Shapiro settles with shyster frac company for $5.3 Million for royalty restitution for PA landowners. Who pays for the $7 Billion in magic money given to Chesapeake by the bankruptcy judge?

2021: Judge lets nasty frac’er escape bankruptcy, rules Chesapeake is worth $1 Billion more than the company does, sets free $7 Billion in debt, gives “big payday” to some, says to CEO Robert Lawler: “To remember that a lot of people have suffered a lot of pain for Chesapeake to have a second chance….”

2021: Yet another dirty judge? Farley Toothman, who let serial oilfield wastewater dumper Robert Allan Shipman walk (98 criminal counts charged against Shipman and 77 charges against his company across six counties from 2003 to 2009), claims health issues could impede him from testifying at his misconduct trial.

2013: Cabot buys second methane polluted residential property in Dimock 12-acre parcel on Carter Road flanked by faulty gas wells

2013: Cabot Oil Demolishes Sautners past home in Dimock, PA

2009: Poisoning Dimock, Lawsuit Challenges Cabot Oil’s Drilling Practices

… The series of infractions on the part of Cabot Oil and Gas, a Houston based energy company that has large holdings in Dimock, resulted in a $120,000 fine from Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) earlier this month. But the cost to residents has been far greater.

On Friday of last week 15 families in Dimock announced that they were suing Cabot for poisoning their water and the likelihood that exposure to toxic chemicals has led to personal injury, including neurological and gastro-intestinal complications. Among the plaintiffs is a Cabot employee and Dimock resident who has knowledge of company practices and violations that have not yet been reported. According to Leslie Lewis, an attorney with one of the firms representing the families,the charges against Cabot are far reaching and reveal a profound degree of negligence and fraudulent conduct. “To me they just seem like a rogue operation,” she says. “Anything goes.” …