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In that case you have two choices.

The first is to just live with the problem until the pool is done and then sue for the cost of fixing everything. If the cost is under $10,000 you can go to small claims court. Otherwise a more traditional lawsuit is necessary.

The second is a more unusual procedure but may be worth it if your estimate of the damages is going to be high.

In that case you can go to court now and ask for an injunction ordering the digging to stop. That can be done relatively quickly.

An injunction is simply an order from the court that someone do, or in this case stop doing, something.

Injunctions are issued when the court is convinced the harm being caused is unreasonable and, from a practical perspective, irreparable.

You are losing the enjoyment of your backyard. Even if that’s a temporary problem you theoretically can’t get back the time you’ve lost and so you’re eligible to ask for an injunction.

I’d start by waiving the civil code in your neighbor’s face. If that doesn’t work, you’ll have to choose Option A or Option B.

Tim Jones is a real estate attorney in Fairfield. If you have any real estate questions you would like to have answered in this column, you can send an email to AllThingsRealEstate@ TJones-Law.com