Two high-profile attorneys are engaged in a legal dispute over the removal of aspen trees in Aspen, Colorado.

Attorney Gerald Hosier is suing his neighbor, attorney Walter Stuart, after Stuart had trees cut down near the two men's property line so he could have a better view of Mount Sopris. According to court filings, Hosier contends the landscaper hired by Stuart removed 30 to 50 aspen trees, some of which were 90 feet tall and up to 70 years old. Hosier is seeking at least $1 million in damages -- the amount equal to the increase in land value as a result of the tree loss.

After the trees were cut, Hosier had PVC poles put in place to mark where the original trees stood.  Now, Stuart is fighting to remove the poles. “This case boils down to one primary question: what damage was done to the plaintiff’s property,” Stuart's attorney, Daniel Bristol, wrote in a filing in support of the bid to have the poles removed. “In order to answer this question, the defendants and the jury should see what the property actually looks like.”

Responding to Stuart’s motion, Hosier's attorney, Matthew Ferguson, wrote that the defendants “simply do not want to be reminded of what they have done. They want to remove any reminder of the scarring to plaintiff’s land — they want to argue we cut down your forest — but, ‘Hey, we gave you a meadow.’”

Judge Gail Nichols of Pitkin County District Court has not yet ruled on the matter.

Source:  aspendailynews.com