A neighbour dispute in Whitehouse, Ohio, over a boundary fence and a 15-foot white spruce tree has ended with a clear message about the cost of cutting down someone else’s tree without permission. The Lucas County Court of Common Pleas found that Michael Meier acted recklessly when he removed the spruce in 2022 while installing a new fence, and ordered treble damages under Ohio’s tree-injury statute. On September 18, 2026, the Sixth District Court of Appeals upheld that finding and fixed the tree-damages award at $11,523.87, according to Long v. Meier Ohio Court Appeals published on Casemine.com. Here's what happened, as per the report:
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