Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

We recently bought a house that has established growths of Bamboo around the periphery of the back yard. Since moving in, we have discovered that the bamboo actually has infested the entire yard, and is growing near the house, garage and small cottage. We spoke to a gardener in the neighborhood who said he was hired by the previous owners or the real estate agent to cut back all of the bamboo everywhere except the periphery, and did we want him to do the same for us?

I feel the extent of the infestation should have been disclosed. we would not have bought the house if we had known this. We are facing a huge extra expense to have the bamboo removed from the lawn and from around the buildings, and I am concerned about the foundation of the house, and the slab of the garage and cottage.

Do I have grounds to sue in small claims court? I am thinking of separately suing the former owners and the real estate agent. Or does this have to go to arbitration? We signed a standard real estate contract with an arbitration clause.


Asked on 5/21/10, 5:13 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Bamboo is HIGHLY invasive and can damage structures. So you are right to be concerned about this. It sounds like you have far more than a small claims case, since you are going to have to investigate the full extent of the infestation. If risomes have gotten under slabs, you may have significant expenses in the future. If it has not gotten under but is near, you need to put barriers in place around structures. And in any case you will need to fight off sproutting for some time to come. You should consider suing the sellers agent and the sellers. You may have to arbitrate it, but there is nothing illegal about starting a lawsuit and then staying it pending arbitration. This will allow you to bring in the agent and their supervising broker who are not parties to the contract, and it will allow you to easily convert any arbitration award to a judgment.

I have over twenty years of real estate litigation experience and have practiced in Santa Clara County my entire career. I also maintain an office in San Jose. If you would like a no-obligation consultation in my San Jose office, please feel free to contact me by phone or email to make an appointment.

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Answered on 5/25/10, 12:43 pm


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