Thread: chinese elm

I think you can chop off the bits on your side of the fence. If the tree itself is a hazard the council can make her have it rendered safe. Of course you might not have a cosy relationship with her after that as it will cost her money.

Astrid, I have used chinese elm for mallet heads and chisel handles. Its tough and has a nice grain.
Cliff

Tell your neighbor if her tree branches damage your buildings your insurance company will probably sue her

Your rights are ......1. talk to her and ask her to trim it
2. trim anything on your side of the fence ( legally is yours )
3. request your local council safety supervisor to pay her a visit, if he/she finds the problem breaking laws, then she will be issued a "correction " order, whereas she will have time to fix it or be fined.

4. I would try and explain it to her either one on one or ...send her a letter via registered mail outlining your intentions should the problem persist ..have the letter witnessed and signed by a local chemist or police officer ....

5. talk to your local council by laws officer, they can give you advice also ......

I could be wrong here so please check with council to confirm... but in another forum there was a discussion about this topic. End result was you can cut down anything on your side of the fence and return it to her yard for her to dispose of. Any damage caused by the tree is her liability. Check with council and then have another discussion with your neighbour fully armed with your rights & her responsibilities. Once she knows her legal liability, she might change her tune.

Good luck,
Corbs

The law in Vic is murky on this issue.
I had two guys from the council round as the branch was dangling over my shed.
the law is basicly the same as with your animals or dam
If your property "escapes" and causes damage then its your responsibility.And it goes to the magistraits court
I really dont want her tree to escape onto my shed roof but untill it does their is nothing i can do.
I will advise her of this and am prepared to go to court to recover my $300 if i have to, just for the principle.
Her husband and son are lawers but as i have photos, have spoken to her at least twice about it and have a letter from the arborist that it is unsound, I should win with costs.
But I really dont want to do it.
as shes a somewhat mercenary person (read mean and greedy),
I thought if i told her it was worth somthing to a timber mill, she might cut it for the money.
I darnt go into my shed on windy days, so int hampering my business.

Astrid

they will be counting on you being intimidated into taking care of it all yourself
you are legally entitled to cut the tree and throw the offcuts on her side as she is the owner

she can also be made to trim the tree and dispose of it at her cost
the noney it cost you already can be charged back to her
you might point out to her that it will be not good for her bankbalace if someone on your side gets injured by an escaping branch

who cares if relations with your neighbours sour
stand up for yourself and dont give em an inch

Astrid - Just a thought.... But, if the arborist says it's unsound then it probably won't have much monetary value because it's probably diseased.

I think its just old, but im giving the logs i'v got to one of our turners, so he can assess it.
Thanks Rayc I will try to negotiate with her after the festive seasons over.
I checked out the law site in Vic and i dont think I can make her pay up unless damage has acually occured.
I can choose to cut it and give her the braches back but the cost of the cutting is mine, being a huge leader, Ill be up for about a grand also have to get a permit.

Astrid

Shame that your council doesn't adopt the same attitude as ours when it comes to chinese elms. They are classed as noxious weeds and will actually remove them for you or repay the costs of having them removed plus poisoning of the stump.

Astrid,

I wonder if the huge chinese elm might start dying soon
Then it might be more convenient for your LOVELY **** neighbour to get rid of it

Originally Posted by astrid

I will advise her of this and am prepared to go to court to recover my $300 if i have to, just for the principle.
Her husband and son are lawers but as i have photos, have spoken to her at least twice about it and have a letter from the arborist that it is unsound, I should win with costs.Astrid

Don't rush into Court.

What evidence do you have to support your claim of the two conversations with the woman concerned? What is shown within the photos to prove that it is the relevant tree? What can e seen within the photo? Does it clearly show how this is a risk to your property? What evidence do you have to support your claim that the arborist is sufficiently qualified to give evidence on your behalf as an expert? Have you taken detailed notes of time, place and content of the conversations you have had with this woman? Are there any independent witnesses to these conversations? What other methods have you tried to resolve the disagreement?

Courts are tricky places and ones not usually resorted to just for the principle. Keep in mind that you are talking about the expenditure of $300.00 here. If you get into civil court and lose, $300.00 is barely going to cover the other sides postage stamps for all the letters they will have sent out in defending the matter.

It will cost you something in the order of the disputed cost to launch civil proceedings in the first place if I remember rightly.

And you anticipate winning with costs. What costs are you going to incur? If you are going to use the Courts time over a $300.00 bill, you should expect that the Court is going to be pretty unimpressed. To be asking a Court for costs following a civil matter means that you have had to spend the money in the first place. A person reprsenting themselves has a fool for a client. There is more truth to that than you might think.

Don't let emotions get in the way here. Principles are fine things but don't stand up long in Courts. Take advantage of firms that offer legal advice freely, think long and hard about it, ring more firms that offer legal advice freely and balance all this against the cost of your time, stress, health, neighbourly harmony, time off work, frustration and then make an informed decision.

Ray,
that is exactly the attitude that people like this rely on to get away with their behaviour.
I have wittness's from the council who took photos of the dangling branch before I cut it.
I have a letter from her acknoweging our conversations.
I have my own photos,
I have my gardener who has taken smaller branches away as a witness.
The arbouists who removed it are certified to assess tree health.
I have the other neihbour whos gutter was ripped off, as a witness on two other occaisons when branches fell on her roof and cracked her tiles.
on these occaisions I removed the debris and paid for its removal. my other neighbour is in her eighties and has had to pay $500 to have other trees belonging to this hag trimmed.
I dont really care about the money its the principal, and as both my brothers in law are lawers, I know this it what lawers love to hear.
But this woman is leaching on her neibours and it has to stop somwhere.
I really dont want my workshop crushed to a pulp possibly with me in it.
As for nieghbourly harmony, she is on my back boundry

the world is in such a mess because people wont stand up for principles.

Astrid

Good on you sticking up for yourself Astrid. I have had a number of small disputes which have gotten to the door of the court house before the other party has caved in and paid up. I find that the clerk of the court is usually very helpful and the court fees are quite reasonable like forty dollars or so. After all the very name 'court of petty sessions' means resolving small disputes. A lot of people go through life avoiding their responsibilities simply because they can get away with it. But that aside chinese elm is excellent small timber, dries well if split and sealed, works very well, beautiful grain and colour, bark dries tight onto the wood for natural edge stuff. I only wish I could get more of the stuff. If I lived nearby I'd gladly come over and remove a few over hanging limbs for the price of a cup of tea. Good luck with it.