A logging job that was supposed to take place on neighbouring property ended with 1,299 trees cut from a Mississippi couple’s land, turning a boundary mistake into a legal dispute over more than $40,000.
asserted
trees → suppose → 40,000
According to the Court of Appeals of Mississippi’s October 7, 2025 decision in Payne Logging LLC v. Gerald Smith and Rhonda Smith, the couple documented the damage with photographs and handwritten notes recording the number and diameter of trees they found cut.
uncertain
they → accord → trees
A chancery court awarded them $41,920, and the appeals court later upheld the judgment after finding that the evidence supported the number of trees cut and their location on the couple’s property.
asserted
evidence → award → property
Logging work crossed onto neighbouring property
Gerald and Rhonda Smith owned 36.5 acres in Tishomingo County, Mississippi, next to a 40-acre property owned by Robert and Joyce Hester.
asserted
Smith → cross → Hester
In 2022, the Hesters hired Payne Logging LLC to harvest timber from their property.
asserted
Hesters → hire → property
The logging operation involved clearing a route between two parcels owned by the Hesters.
asserted
operation → involve → Hesters
According to the court record, Payne Logging cleared a road diagonally across the Smiths’ property while attempting to connect with a public road.
uncertain
Logging → accord → road
Trees were also cut along the Smiths’ northern boundary.
asserted
Trees → cut → boundary
The Smiths later argued that the logging company had crossed onto their property because the boundary used by the loggers was incorrect.
asserted
boundary → argue → loggers
The dispute eventually centred on exactly where the property line was located and how many trees had been cut on the Smiths’ land.
asserted
trees → centre → land
Gerald Smith testified that he had spoken with Jon Payne before the logging began and told him not to cut trees on the Smiths’ property.
asserted
logging → testify → property
Smith said he also asked Payne whether he knew where the property boundaries were, and Payne indicated that he did.
asserted
he → say → Payne
On August 11, 2022, Rhonda Smith discovered that a path had been cut through their property.
asserted
path → discover → property
The court record described an existing trail that had previously been narrow enough for a four-wheeler but had been substantially widened by the logging operation.
asserted
that → describe → operation
The couple began documenting the trees
asserted
couple → begin → trees
After discovering the cutting, the Smiths began documenting what had happened.
asserted
what → discover → cutting
They took photographs of the affected areas and made handwritten records of the trees they believed had been cut.
asserted
they → take → trees
The handwritten tally recorded the number of trees and their diameters.
asserted
tally → record → trees
Because the trees had already been cut, the couple measured the remaining stumps.
asserted
couple → cut → stumps
The court record states that the trees had been cut approximately two to three inches above the ground.
asserted
trees → state → ground
The Smiths made another tally after what they described as a second encroachment along the northern boundary on August 21, 2022.
asserted
they → make → August
Their records eventually counted 1,299 trees.
asserted
records → count → trees
Of those, 466 had diameters of seven inches or more, while another 833 were smaller than seven inches.
asserted
833 → have → inches
The logging company challenged the accuracy of this tally.
asserted
company → challenge → tally
Payne Logging argued, among other things, that the Smiths had not measured the trees at the appropriate height because they measured the stumps after the trees had been cut.
asserted
trees → argue → stumps
The appeals court, however, found that the evidence was sufficient to support the chancery court's findings.
asserted
evidence → find → findings
The court noted that the trees were already gone, making it impossible to measure standing trunks in the usual manner.
asserted
it → note → manner
Testimony also supported the use of the stump measurements in determining the size of the trees.
asserted
Testimony → support → trees
Survey identified the actual property line
asserted
Survey → identify → line
The location of the boundary became another important part of the case.
asserted
location → become → case
Payne Logging had relied on a line that was used during the logging operation.
asserted
that → rely → operation
According to the appellate decision, that line was at some points 180 feet away from the actual property boundary.
uncertain
line → accord → boundary
The Smiths hired certified surveyor J.T. Strickland to determine the correct boundary.
asserted
Smiths → hire → boundary
Strickland conducted a Class C survey and prepared a plat showing the property line.
asserted
Strickland → conduct → line
He testified that the boundary he identified was consistent with the property deeds and earlier formal surveys.
asserted
he → testify → deeds
His survey concluded that 4.62 acres of timber had been cut from the Smiths’ property.
asserted
acres → conclude → property
The chancery court accepted the survey evidence and found that the line used by Payne Logging was not the correct boundary.
asserted
line → accept → Logging
The appellate court also noted that the evidence supported the conclusion that logging continued even after the company had been shown the correct property line.
asserted
company → note → line
How the $41,920 award was calculated
The damages were determined under Mississippi's timber-trespass law.
asserted
damages → calculate → law
The statute provides remedies when trees are cut without the property owner's consent and also allows additional damages when the cutting is wilful or done in reckless disregard of the owner's rights.
asserted
cutting → provide → rights
…and 14 more, not listed.
The Aporia
