Dear Shady-in-Chicago,

There was actually a recent case (Santa Clara County v. Treanor) in California that matched the facts of your current situation almost exactly.  In that case, Mr. Treanor planted some Redwood trees in his yard many years before his neighbor, Mr. Vargas, installed solar panels on the roof of his house.  As the trees grew, they began to cast a large shadow on his neighbor’s property, greatly reducing the efficiency his solar system.  Mr. Vargus sued Mr. Treanor, and asked the court to order the removal of the trees.  He based his case on an obscure state law called the Solar Shade Control Act, which says that no person shall allow a tree or shrub to grow on their property if it casts a shadow greater than 10 percent of the collector absorption area.  Because Mr. Treanor’s Redwoods were clearly in violation of the law, the court had no choice but to order the removal of the trees. The 1979 law has since been amended to exempt trees planted before solar system was installed, and also future growth of the tree.

In states where no specific law exists to protect a property owner’s rights to the sun, plaintiffs could still try to protect their solar rights by arguing that the shade from a neighbor’s tree is a public nuisance (like a pile of trash or toxic waste), which causes economic harm to the owner of the solar panels.

However, in such a situation, it would be advisable to avoid litigation altogether by looking for potential solutions that would avoid conflict.  For example, you could invite your neighbor over for a coffee and ask him/her to trim the tree in such a way that it reduces the shadow on your property.  Or, if that doesn’t work,  perhaps you could offer to participate in the cost of relocating the tree to a far corner of your neighbors’ yard. 

If you’d like to talk more about this issue, please feel free to be in touch anytime: jjacobs@cleantechlawpartners.com

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