MBE Rules · Real Property
Support rights — lateral and subjacent
The rule
Landowners have an absolute right to lateral support of their land in its natural state from adjoining land, and a strict-liability claim lies when an excavator's removal causes the neighbor's land to subside; if buildings contribute to the collapse, only negligence liability attaches. Subjacent support is owed by anyone owning underground rights (e.g., mineral rights) beneath the surface owner and is strict as to both the land and pre-existing structures.
In plain English
Neighbors and subsurface-rights holders cannot dig away the support your land needs. Bare land = strict liability; land with buildings = must prove negligence for lateral support.
Memory hook
Lateral = side-to-side (neighbor). Subjacent = underneath (miner).
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