J. Patrick Sutton Cases & Issues Blog

Sell the horses you were allowed to have? Are you kidding me?

I've filed a new case on behalf of client who bought a 6-acre lot with a home. The deed restrictions specifically allowed "agricultural" uses and one large animal per acre. After my client bought four horses and built expensive outbuildings and fencing, a majority of neighbors got together to "amend" the restrictive covenants to prohibit agricultural uses and horses. I cannot think of a more fundamental kind of property right — except leasing! — which has been effectively confiscated from an owner. More and more, I believe that the bundle of rights that are fundamental to property ownership cannot be taken away without an owner's consent, to the point where they convey with the land despite a purported "amendment" which seeks to take them away. More on that in a later post.
J. Patrick Sutton Cases & Issues Blog