Neigbor cutting down tree question...

unpaintedhuffhines

unpaintedhuffhines

1,000+ Posts
at one of my properties the neighbor called and told me he was cutting down a tree that is on his lot but also hangs over the fence into my property. He said I was to remove the limbs that landed on my side from HIS tree (not small limbs mind you). I told him I thought he was wrong.

Is it his responsibility to remove HIS tree from my property in this situation? He doesn't seem to think so, but then again he didn't seem very bright in the first place.
 
if that was the case, what would stop him from dropping the tree completely into your property. nice guy.
rolleyes.gif
 
I know it seems completely logical that it would be his responsibilty, but wanted to see if anyone knew without a doubt.

Yes, he's an idiot. Assuming we are all correct I will not be picking up anything. He's not being a dick about it, he said he "thought" it was my responsibility. I told him it wasn't but would get back to him today.
 
If the limbs are bothersome to you, you have the right to cut them back so they aren't in your "airspace", for lack of a better term, even though they are attached to his tree.

I think legally they might be your limbs but it is still ****** of him to do what he's doing.
 
You can cut them back to your line as long as it doesn't kill the tree, but that does not make them your limbs. Anything that he cuts off of his tree is his responsiblity.
 
I don't think anybody who has posted thus far knows to a legal certainty that the branches are your or your neighbor's responsibility.

How about another angle -- do you need firewood for next year?
 
Not a lawyer, but I believe WooHorn is completely correct. You have the right to cut the limbs over your property line if it does not kill the tree. That does not mean it is your responsibility to cut limbs off a tree your neighbor is cutting down. It is his responsibility, and he would be liable if the tree or its limbs damaged anything in your yard, like the fence, your storage shed, or your Camaro up on blocks.
 
There is a legal term for your neighbor's notion. Fuckingus nuttinus. He wants to cut his tree? Go right ahead, but the idea that he can basically cause limbs off of HIS tree to fall into YOUR yard and expect you to pick them up is pretty out there. Conversely, there is a slight glimmer of authority that you have no right to trim his tree. People have argued, unsuccessfully, that their tree had essentially intruded into your airspace for long enough that they have an easement by adverse possession. They lost for technical reasons. While he may not have to clean up a tree that falls into your yard as it might have been an act of god, I'm pretty sure he isn't god even when he looks into his own mirror, but then again...?
 
thanks for the replies everyone

to clarify...I am not wanting to cut his tree. He is cutting back an old tree that has limbs that will fall on the property (this isn't my home it's a rental of mine so it's actual my tenants camaro).

so Nick...you're a lawyer if I recall correctly...to a legal cetainty....does he need to dispose of the limbs that fall on my property?
 
The limbs follow the tree, it's his responsibility. Now you have two lawyers blessing this advice. Make sure he doesn't **** up your fence in the process.
 
I knew that you didn't want to cut his tree, but people were getting concepts confused. He is probably thinking about the fact that he isn't responsible for raking your yard. That's true because he isn't making the leaves fall. He's making the limbs fall. If his tree unexpectedly falls on your car or fence and crushes it, it is generally not his responsibility (it could be if he knew if was going to fall and he did nothing about it). In this case, he is the one making the tree and its limbs fall down. He is responsible for the damage they do, including littering your property. I have this amusing image of him up on a ladder trying to mark the exact inch where the limb extends over your property, cutting it, yelling "TIMBER" and then telling you to haul your *** out of bed and clean it up. How about I stick it in your *** and light it on fire and see if the limb disappears?

monty-python4.jpg


Does he wear high heels, suspenders and a bra?
 
I'm sure that the colorful imagery won't help you in maintaining neighborly relations, but it amused me to see the guy with a flaming stick up his backside and my amusement is pretty much what I'm about these days.
 
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