Texas woman wins $100,000 legal-fee award in backyard office dispute with HOA

In a Texas case, a homeowner challenged an association’s rejection of her proposed backyard office on the ground of an alleged height violation. Six years after the application was rejected, the Texas Third Court of Appeals awarded her $100,000 in attorney fees, leaving the homeowners’ association with the heavy legal tab.Backyard project faces oppositionThe dispute began in 2020 when Masha Davis, a resident of the Davis Spring subdivision in Williamson County, Texas, applied to build an accessory structure in her backyard. Davis described the proposed addition as a home office, while the homeowners’ association described it as a shed or shed-like structure in court proceedings.The Texas Third Court of Appeals said the association’s Architectural Review Committee denied the application, finding the proposed building exceeded the height allowed and rose above the roofline.Davis appealed, arguing that the recorded declaration of the community and its enforceable design guidelines did not include a height restriction that would prohibit her proposed structure. She sued Davis Spring Property Owners’ Association and its board president, Amanda Mock.Court finds no applicable height limitationThe issue in the case was the power of the association to enforce the architectural restrictions and whether the decision of the association was based upon the governing documents.The trial court considered the 2002 Design Guidelines, the only guidelines on record when Davis submitted her…