TIMBER TRESPASS

Washington statutes and case law provide for treble damages and attorneys fees for unlawful tree cutting.  As a result, the most trivial trespass can create a lawsuit.  Early resolution is usually the goal.  Washington appellate cases have steadily expanded the scale of damages in recent years.  If trees are found to be “ornamental”, the claimant can ask for replacement costs which can be huge for large trees, even for indigenous trees with little or no value as timber.