COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that an oil well owner can recoup a $50,000 fine for pollution violations caused by an Austintown-based oil drilling company.

The justices this week ruled in the case filed by the owner of an oil well in Stark County who paid a $50,000 fine to state regulators to settle pollution violations caused by Wildcat Drilling of Victoria Road.

Well owner, Discovery Oil and Gas hired Wildcat to drill the well, whose attorneys argued that they weren’t responsible for the fine because Discovery didn’t tell Wildcat it was negotiating a settlement.

The Supreme Court ruled otherwise, finding that the contract between the owner and driller had a written provision requiring Wildcat to indemnify, or reimburse, Discovery for any fines. The provision did not have any requirement that Wildcat be notified in advance.

The Court majority rejected Wildcat's claim that under Ohio court precedent, a person obligated to indemnify another for a judgment must provide notice about the dispute before any payment is made.