Morris v. Kadrmas

Greg Morris (plaintiff), a subdivision lot owner, sued Wayne and Shirley Kadrmas (defendants), adjacent subdivision lot owners, and the subdivision’s Land Owners Committee (the committee) (defendant) to enforce restrictive covenants. Morris alleged that the Kadrmases and the committee violated the covenants when the committee approved the Kadrmases’ plans to construct a garage on their lot without an accompanying residential structure and in violation of restrictions regarding set-back distances and approved roofing materials and the Kadrmases then constructed the garage according to their proposed plans and specifications. The subdivision’s declarations contained restrictive covenants, which ran with each lot, limited each lot to residential purposes exclusively, and vested compliance and approval authority in the committee and the right of enforcement in each lot owner. The covenants allowed the committee some discretion to make exceptions to some of the building requirements, but not to the requirement for an accompanying residential structure. The trial court dismissed the actions against the Kadrmases and the committee. Morris appealed the decision granting summary judgment in favor of the Kadrmases and denying his motion for summary judgment and issuance of an injunction ordering the Kadrmases to raze their garage. None of the parties contested that the garage the Kadrmases constructed on their lot did not comply with restrictive covenants prohibiting customary outbuildings without an accompanying residence or that the garage violated additional restrictions regarding set-back distances and approved roofing materials. The Kadrmases argued on appeal that notwithstanding those violations, the construction of his garage was proper because the committee approved it, and they argued that because Morris failed to appeal the summary judgment in favor of the committee, Morris could not proceed against the Kadrmases to enforce the restrictive covenants because Morris’s quarrel was with the committee.