Legal Question in Business Law in California

What kind of tree? Out where I live, people are begging for fallen trees. Ask around to see if anyone will come and get it for an amateur or farm sawmill operation. Of course, you are responsible to the neighbor for its removal, and the contractor may be liable to you, indeed probably is, but depending upon the wording of the contract.

I agree with Mr. Whipple.

If your contract says the contractor is supposed to remove the tree, then it shouldn't matter that part of it is on someone else's property. The same is true if it doesn't say he is to remove the tree. If all you hired him to do was to cut the tree, then removing it is your problem.

Removing the tree is ultimately your responsibility. If the contractor is supposed to do the job but refuses, the burden falls to you rather than to your neighbor. You could sue the contractor to recover the cost of removal, but to win you will have to show that he had a duty to remove it.

Note that, as long as the tree remains on your neighboring lot, you are a trespasser. The owner can seek damages from you, and the longer the tree remains the higher his damages will be. He may very well decide not to sue you if you remove the tree after a reasonable time, but the longer you wait the more likely a lawsuit will become and the more you will have to pay.

Finally, you are also responsible for any damage the tree caused to your neighbor's property when it fell, as well as for any other damage it may cause after that. For example, if it dries out and catches fire, you could be responsible for the resulting losses.