Taking fruit from a footpath tree could be stealing, lawyers warn

A Queensland homeowner has been left stunned after a neighbour claimed lemons hanging near a public footpath were “fair game” – but the law suggests helping yourself to overhanging fruit could come with surprising consequences. The dispute began when the resident, writing into a Yahoo News Q&A with Maurice Blackburn lawyers Alison and Jillian Barrett, described repeated incidents involving a large lemon tree in the front yard. “We have a big lemon tree in our front yard that hangs slightly over the fence towards the footpath. Lately, I’ve noticed people walking past and helping themselves to the lemons, but one neighbour in particular takes handfuls at a time,” the homeowner said. “Last week, I actually saw her come right up into our front garden to pick them. “When I asked her to stop, she seemed genuinely surprised and said because the tree is next to the footpath and some of the branches hang over, the fruit is fair game.” MORE NEWS Landlord says renter can’t have baby over request ‘Too expensive’: Young Aussies shun local property dream ‘Not a rounding error’: RBA move to wipe $58k off loans A lemon tree by the footpath might look like an open invitation, but in Queensland ...