People Versus the Tree

This is the story of a man brought up on a Connecticut farm who decided to specialize in environmental law. While attending college and law school, he worked for a tree surgery firm and learned all he could about physiology, anatomy, pathology, and the survival and reproductive strategies of trees. He particularly enjoyed visiting a botanical garden for trees near his school and read as much about trees as he did about law. After graduating, he was lucky enough to join a firm in White Plains, New York, where he worked on numerous cases involving environmental issues that included trees. Yearning to do more, however, he founded a nonprofit organization and made it his mission to protect trees: His first case involved Mr. Elm, a majestic elm tree in the Town of Carpen. Mr. Grevis, the landowner, wanted to chop down the tree because of its falling leaves and sap droppings. But the lawyer refused to back down, taking him to court to save Mr. Elm. The stakes are high in this courtroom drama, and the final decision rests with the jury in The People Versus the Tree.