Thousands of verified Experts are ready to answer your specific questions 24/7.
Satisfaction is guaranteed and you pay your Expert only if you are satisfied.
Just type your detailed question and click "Get an Answer."
In minutes you'll get a response from an Expert. You can always ask follow-up questions.
Happy with your answer? Just click "Accept" to pay your Expert.
I am 77 years old and own considerable amt. of land. Most of this land is in pine trees or hardwoods. It goes very deep in wooded ares that I can no longer go through. I have a retired Forester that checks the trees for me now. He found that an adjoining property owner had cut the trees off 12 acres of my property, The first time probably in 1992 or 1993. He was checking the timber to see about someone thinning the trees for me and this property owner had already cut over it a second time. We have had a property line run again, since the fence that was the property line had been torn down, the cost was $4000. He paid half and I paid Half. Although I did not cross his property line. Can I retrieve the money he received for the timber? There is no dispute about the property.
State/Country relating to Question: Mississippi Already Tried: Just ask a friend that has not practised law for several years
Yes, you would have a claim against the commercial value of the trees harvested. Most states increase the damages you can recover by two to three times that amount, if you can show that the cutting was intentional or grossly negligent.
The question will be whether you can bring the claim at this late date. The statute of limitations might have run for the first cutting. However, you can make the claim that you could not have reasonably discovered the injury and claim. If that is the case, then the statute of limitations would not run until you knew or should have known of the neighbor's actions.
Please let me know, if you have follow-up questions.
The information is provided for discussion and entertainment purposes only. I believe in helping people and answering their questions and providing information and solutions. To encourage and facilitate this practice, it is understood and agreed by the recipient that by opening, reading, accepting, and viewing this information, no attorney-client relationship has been discussed, agreed to or otherwise established. It is understood that by posting to this site, your information is made public and no attorney-client confidence is created or possible.
In legal matters, time is of the essence. As such, you should contact an experienced lawyer right away to protect your legal rights!
I appreciate your "Accepting" my answer if it has been helpful to you. Doing so allows me to continue helping in this manner. Thank you.
Attorney
Attorney and small business owner with 10 years experience in the general practice of law.