YouTube star’s neighbor blasted for allegedly bulldozing ‘over 100’ trees between properties. What are their rights?
Lindsay DeFranco recently woke up to a nightmare. Woman from Georgia and wife of YouTube star Philip DeFranco He found that almost all of the trees between the couple’s backyard and the neighbor’s backyard were gone.
“Complete and total destruction,” he said in a TikTok video posted on November 19 and viewed more than three million times. (1) “Privacy has completely disappeared.”
DeFranco said his neighbor had previously approached the house with plans to expand his backyard and fill in a retention pond, a project that would require the removal of numerous trees, including some on DeFranco’s property.
“We told him we want to protect our privacy. We don’t want all of these trees cut down,” DeFranco said. “He agreed. He said, ‘Okay, here’s what we’ll do. We’ll mark the trees we want to cut down and let you know before we do it.’ ‘Okay, will it just be a few trees?’ we said. “And he said, ‘Yes, there will only be a few trees.'”
But it was more than just “a few trees.” About a year later, DeFranco said he woke up to find that nearly all the trees had been removed, he estimated “over 100,” and his backyard was left open. He insisted his neighbors had not given notice of plans to cut down any of their trees, despite seeking approval to begin work on the retention pond.
DeFranco shared before and after images of the destruction. His video quickly went viral, with comments pouring in, many saying “tree law” — a niche but potentially costly area of property law.
So how can the tree law be applied in this case?
Tree law is a broad term used to describe state and local laws that determine who owns a tree and what happens when someone removes a tree they do not have the right to cut down.
These penalties can be very severe. Many states impose serious financial consequences for unauthorized tree removals, especially when mature trees are involved.
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In Georgia, a person may be liable if a tree on someone else’s property is intentionally or accidentally cut, damaged, or removed. According to attorney Robert Cairns, property owners may be entitled to damages up to three times the value of the tree, plus the costs of renovating the land, attorneys’ fees and, depending on the circumstances, punitive damages. (2) Only an arborist can determine the value of damaged trees.
