Question
Sean,
Thanks for taking my question.  
I have an area of my backyard where water pools during/after a storm - roughly oval 15 feet by 8 feet in diameter after a good rain (say 1" inch in 24 hours).  The area is over one corner of the shallow end of an in ground pool which was filled in 3 years ago.  This has gotten slightly better on its own in time, but is still a problem.  I've read about regrading and installing drains, but don't think these are feasible: I can't easily change the grade as I have a paver patio coming out from the house on 1 side, and neighbors yards on the other that are higher.  As far as a drain goes, I don't have place to lead it too except the neighbors yard which I doubt would be appreciated!
Would it help to build a trench with 4' pipe/back fill with stones over a length of say 30 feet anyway, capping one or both ends?
That side of the yard is also shaded for all but the 1st couple hours of daylight.  Therefore grass does not grow well there (even in the 'dry' parts) and my wife would like to just mulch the area and place a bench swing or playset there. We are concerned however about it too frequently being wet because of the pooling.  Any advice would be appreciated.  Thanks in advance.
Mike

Answer
Legally you can drain towards your neighbors and that is probably what you should do from the sounds of it. If that is the way the land slopes naturally (before or when the houses were built) then thats the way it is allowed to go now. The law typically only forbids you to "point source" the water onto your neighbors. In other words, its fine to allow the water to drain gradually across your lot onto his/hers through grass and landscaping over a wide area. However, you can not collect it and then pipe it to your property line and then dump it out into his/her yard in a concentrated outflow.
Consider raising the area with a little more soil and sand to remove the low spot. A french drain will likely do little or nothing.

Best of Luck
Sean J Murphy
www.amenityarchitects.com