Property Overview
A mixed-hardwood stand in Mississippi along a shared boundary with an adjoining ownership. The neighbor had recently completed a harvest on their side. The landowner walked the line and found freshly cut stumps on the wrong side of the paint.
Landowner Objective
Document exactly what was taken, value it correctly, and create a record the landowner could use to pursue resolution — without inflating numbers or skipping steps that would weaken the claim.
Forestry Challenge
Trespass appraisals stand or fall on documentation. Stumps decay, paint fades, and memory blurs. Without a disciplined field record tied to species, diameter, and product class, even a real loss becomes hard to defend.
Recommended Approach
- Walked the line with the original deed and the existing paint, confirmed which side of the boundary each stump was on, and flagged each one.
- Measured every cut stump for diameter, identified species from bark and stump characteristics, and photographed each one with a scale reference.
- Estimated merchantable volume by species and product class using regional taper and form tables.
- Built a stumpage appraisal using current regional hardwood markets, then layered the additional damages — site disturbance, residual stand damage, and reforestation impact — into a separate line.
- Delivered a written appraisal report with maps, photos, the stump tally, the valuation method, and the assumptions stated plainly.
Results
The report gave the landowner a defensible, line-item record of what was taken and what it was worth. The investigation process — done before stumps and evidence degraded — held up under review. The landowner had the documentation needed to pursue resolution on real numbers, not estimates.
Lessons Learned
- Move fast. The value of a trespass investigation drops every week stumps sit in the weather.
- Document method, not just numbers. The report's credibility comes from showing how the volume and value were derived.
- Separate stumpage from damages. Conflating them weakens both lines of the claim.
- Walk the boundary before you walk the stumps. The line decides the case; the stumps quantify it.