Chiat Lynn at Art of the Odd clued me in on this niche, and she did so over Twitter no less. I guess she wanted to see how deeply rooted I was in the niche law market, or whether I would just ignore the subject and leaf it alone, or maybe I would go ahead and o-pine on the subject. Maybe I could just spruce up the subject a little or find a way to branch out from my existing niche. But, I have barked on about this too long now.
Puns aside, when you think about trees you start to realize the various disputes they can cause. After all, with ownership of anything, there can be problems. This is no less true for such a irrepressible plant. It is also one of those areas of law that you do not think about until you need a legal expert in the area. Finding such an expert is probably not easy, so it lends itself well to the niche marketing practice of law.
Benny Kass with The Washington Post wrote about the typically un-thought about legal issues involving trees in 2007 in the Housing Counsel section of the paper. He asked the question what do you do when a neighbor's tree, for example, is damaging your property? Just as importantly, what do you do when a neighbor is damaging your tree? What if the tree is essentially trespassing on your property, or in other words encroaching across the property line? Most can use self-help, but to what limitations? Do you know what the Massachusetts Rule is in regard to legal theory and law? The Old Virginia Rule? Do you know what Restatements of Law has to say about these issues? The Hawaii Rule? What is the "appropriate balance" between property owners with trees issues?
No, for some reason the niche has been right in front of me, or really all around me, but I have apparently not been able to see the forest for the trees. (There I go again). And, it is really unforgivable when you think about it because I live in East Texas for goodness sake. I am surrounded by huge pines as far as the eye can see. When hurricane Ike came though I learned that pine trees do not tolerate hurricane force winds very well. Probably half of the roofs in my neighborhood where destroyed by downed pine trees, and most of these trees where not from the yards of the homes damaged. What is the liability issues in this regard? Have I just been so blind all of these years?
Chiat Lynn focused me in on the law firm of Bonapart & Associates in Sausalito, California because, although Barri Bonapart does a number of things, she practices tree law. In fact, her URL is TreeLaw.Com. On her site she has a primer entitled Trees: What's Your Liability? She also has other articles posted online so you can get a feel of the practice area. I liked reading Tree Law: Specializing In The Legal Issues That Surround You. Ms. Bonapart had an article published in Lawyers Weekly USA entitled, Tree Law: More Complicated And Plentiful Than Many Lawyers Think. Now, that article speaks to me and it should speak to you because it illustrates, does it not, that the niche practice of law is right in front of you. It is a matter of defining it in a way that attracts those in need of your services.
The Grossman Law Offices markets for personal injury cases as the Texas Fallen Tree Lawyer.
Law.Com has an interesting article entitled Lawyer's Accidental Specialty in Tree Lawsuits Bears Fruit.
Need a place to learn more and from which to begin networking for referrals? Try joining the American Society of Consulting Arborists (ASCA).
Many states have forestry agencies and license tree experts. Here you can find Maryland's tree expert law and licensing site.
Did you know that Maine has a Tree Growth Tax Law? Many states, cities and governmental areas have local ordinances concerning trees. These are laws concerning trees, and laws create the need for lawyers. Here are some of Virginia's ordinances, for example. Here are the Kansas tree and shrubbery laws.
And, it really goes further than all of this. East Texas is full of paper mills. Tree harvesting is big. There is also logging in other parts of the country. Timber must be bought, cut, sold, stored. All of this involves laws, contracts, disputes and lawyers.
In this day and age, contractors have penalties for damaging or cutting down certain trees according to their contracts. Who enforces these?
There are commercial tree care contracts. These bring the law in on this matter.
Then, of course, there is the whole green movement and this effects trees and this ever increasingly involves laws. CBS reported on two California homeowners that fought it out over one neighbor's trees blocking his solar panels from the sun. It turns out that California has a law that can result in a neighbor being forced to take down his trees. Like that? Hate that? Either way, it involves lawyers. I have attached the video below.
This, ultimately, is enough to start you on your way in this adventure. So, forget the jokes and puns and plant your own seeds of success in this niche area of law.
Watch CBS Videos Online
Comments