Property
A Neighbor's Tree Over the Line: Who Owns It, Who May Trim It
4 min · Updated 2026-09-28
Who owns a tree near the line in California and Texas, the Texas right to trim branches to the line, and California's damages for tree injury.
Who owns a tree near the line turns on where its trunk stands. In California the Civil Code says so in two short sections; in Texas, the State Law Library says there is no specific state statute, though court cases have addressed it, and the trunk’s location generally decides ownership, with exceptions. This page sets out what those sources say; it is not legal advice, and a dispute is a question for a lawyer.
| Where the tree is | California (Civil Code) | Texas (State Law Library) |
|---|---|---|
| Trunk wholly on one lot | The owner of that land, even if the roots grow into the neighbor’s land (§ 833) | The trunk’s location generally decides who owns the tree, though there can be exceptions |
| Trunk on the line | The owners of the lots it stands on, in common (§ 834) | Not addressed in the State Law Library guide |
| Branches over the line | Not addressed in §§ 833, 834 or 3346 | The neighbor may trim limbs and branches back to the property line, but could be sued for injuring the tree or other property doing it |
California: the trunk decides
Trees whose trunks stand wholly on one owner’s land belong only to that owner, although their roots grow into the land of another (Civil Code § 833). Trees whose trunks stand partly on the land of two or more adjoining owners belong to them in common (§ 834). Neither section, nor the damages section below, says anything about trimming a neighbor’s branches or roots; that question is one for a lawyer.
California: damages for injuring trees on another’s land
For wrongful injury to trees on another person’s land, or for removing them, the damages are three times the sum that would make up for the actual harm (Civil Code § 3346). They are twice the actual harm where the trespass was casual or involuntary, or where the person had probable cause to believe the land was their own or that of the person they worked for or at whose direction they acted. They are the actual harm alone where highway officers took the wood to repair a public highway or bridge on or next to the land, and where the person relied on a boundary survey that put the line in the wrong place, if they or their principal, lessor or immediate predecessor in title had the survey made and it was made by a land surveyor licensed in California. An action for these damages must be brought within five years of the trespass.
Texas: court cases, and trimming to the line
The Texas State Law Library’s neighbor law guide says Texas does not have a specific state statute on trees across a boundary line, though court cases have addressed it. It says the trunk’s location generally determines who owns the tree, though there can be exceptions, and that a neighboring landowner has the right to trim or cut off the limbs or branches to the property line, but could be sued for injuring the tree or other property in the process. Cities may have their own tree rules, and a property owners’ association may regulate tree maintenance.
City tree rules can apply too
Austin and Los Angeles regulate some trees, and removing or pruning one can need a city permit; the tree removal permit guide sets out which trees each city regulates and what it asks for.