A man asked the court to oblige his neighbor to cut down trees because of the shade on his garden, but was denied due to the lack of one document
The Lanovetsky District Court of Ternopil region considered a case filed by the owner of a residential house against a neighbor regarding the removal of obstacles in the use of property, which, according to the plaintiff, were created by green plantings.
Circumstances of the case
The plaintiff justified his claims by stating that the green plantings growing on the defendant's land plot shade his land plot, making its effective use impossible. On June 3, 2025, the plaintiff applied to the Borsukivska Village Council of Kremenets District, Ternopil region, with a statement to resolve the conflict. On July 1, 2025, the village council conducted a commission inspection of the green plantings. In response to the statement, the plaintiff was explained his rights under Article 105 of the Land Code of Ukraine. On October 22, 2025, the commission drew up an inspection report of the green plantings, which established the location of the trees on the defendant's land plot at a certain distance from the boundary, as well as partial intrusion of branches onto the neighboring land plot.
The defendant's representative, in the response to the claim, requested to deny the claim, referring to the fact that the plaintiff did not provide documents certifying ownership or the right to use the land plot. The inspection report of the green plantings does not contain information regarding specific violations of the plaintiff's rights. Moreover, according to Article 105 of the Land Code of Ukraine, owners and land users have the right to independently cut off roots of trees and bushes that penetrate from a neighboring land plot if such penetration obstructs the use of the land plot for its intended purpose.
What the court decided
The Lanovetsky District Court of Ternopil region considered case No. 602/1002/25 and decided to deny the claims.
The court established that the plaintiff is the owner of the residential house and the land user of the land plot. However, the plaintiff did not provide proper and admissible evidence confirming ownership or the right to use the land plot regarding which the claims for removal of obstacles were made. Without confirmation of the right to the land plot and its boundaries, the court is unable to establish the fact of violation of the plaintiff's rights.
The court noted that according to Article 105 of the Land Code of Ukraine, in case of penetration of roots and branches of trees from one land plot to another, owners and land users have the right to independently cut off roots of trees and bushes that penetrate from the neighboring land plot if such penetration obstructs the use of the land plot for its intended purpose. This provision does not require a court decision for this.
Considering the unproven claims, the claims are not subject to satisfaction.
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