Today marks a milestone for Tree Law as The Lawyer magazine published a full feature on our journey, highlighting how we became the UK’s first and only dedicated tree law firm. The article, written by Jessica Boak, shines a spotlight not just on our work but also on the growing importance of trees in legal, social, and environmental debates .
A Case That Captured the Nation
The feature opens with the Sycamore Gap trial, one of the most high-profile tree-related cases in recent years. Two men were convicted of felling the much-loved tree during Storm Agnes, an act that resonated deeply across the UK. While I wasn’t directly involved in the prosecution, my presence in the courtroom symbolised something larger: how trees themselves are becoming central to legal conversations.
As I reflected in the article, the sentencing remarks were all about what the tree meant to people, but the tree itself risked being lost in the discussion. This is exactly why Tree Law exists, to make sure that the legal system doesn’t just see trees as background objects, but as vital living infrastructure that requires thoughtful management and protection .
From NHS to Niche: Building a Career in Tree Law
My legal career began in clinical negligence and personal injury before moving into property and insurance work. It was there that tree-related disputes, especially cases involving subsidence, began to dominate my caseload. These disputes often arose when tree roots in clay soils extracted moisture, causing buildings to crack. Once thought to be confined to London and the South East, these cases are now emerging as far north as Newcastle due to climate change .
By 2016, I was leading a team at DAC Beachcroft, advising insurers, councils, and landowners on complex tree-related cases. The deeper I went, the more I saw a systemic problem: trees were too often treated as expendable liabilities. Insurers and local authorities defaulted to felling, which only exacerbated climate risks in the long term. That tension became the seed for Tree Law.
The Birth of Tree Law
During the Covid-19 pandemic, remote working and digital case management tools created a new possibility: running a specialist law firm without the traditional infrastructure of offices and filing cabinets. In November 2021, I launched Tree Law, the first and only firm in the UK focused exclusively on legal issues involving trees .
We began in a converted shipping container in South Wales, part of a sustainable community hub complete with decommissioned train carriages and a street food court. Since then, the team has grown, with lawyers working flexibly across the UK. Our cases now span planning disputes, subsidence claims, Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs), invasive species, neighbour complaints, and even criminal prosecutions.
A Firm with Roots and Reach
Tree Law has always balanced rigorous legal expertise with a public-facing approach. Alongside our casework, we engage with the public through media interviews, YouTube, and even TikTok—where a short video on trees blocking light reached more than 90,000 viewers. People care about trees, and part of our mission is to make sure the legal system keeps pace with that passion.
The Lawyer article also highlights our broader thought leadership, from chairing industry forums to offering training for councils and insurers. Much of our outreach is channelled through our website, where homeowners, councils, and professionals can access resources, guides, and updates on the law. (You can explore our resources on tree root subsidence and Tree Preservation Orders for more detail.)
Innovation at the Heart of Practice
Our growth is also driven by innovation. As featured in the article, Tree Law has developed a carbon calculator that compares the environmental impact of different engineering and legal solutions to subsidence, from felling to underpinning. Built after I trained at Cambridge University’s sustainability and business programme, the tool is already attracting interest from insurers and housing associations .
This calculator reflects the wider challenge: balancing legal, environmental, and social considerations in every decision involving trees. Sometimes the most sustainable choice is also the most legally sound.
Looking Ahead
Tree Law has grown from a niche idea to a profitable, expanding practice backed by growth funding from the Business Bank of Wales. With a fourth solicitor joining the team this year, the ambition is clear—we are scaling to meet demand while staying true to our boutique, specialist identity .
The Lawyer article closes with a reminder that what may look like a narrow specialism actually touches everything from property damage and climate mitigation to criminal justice. As I said in the piece: “People think tree law is niche. But when you look at the cases we’re dealing with – criminal prosecutions, property damage, climate mitigation – it’s everywhere. The trees are speaking. It’s just whether we choose to listen.”
