Gladney Darroh v. Kevin Spearman

Case Background

On September 24, 2021, Gladney and Deborah Darroh filed a lawsuit (Case No.: 2021-62037) in the Texas State, District Court of Harris County. This case was presided over by Judge Ursula A. Hall. The case centered on allegations of Deceptive Trade Practices Act violations related to interior design services.

Cause

In January 2020, Gladney and Deborah Darroh sought interior design services for their home renovation in Houston, Texas. They engaged Kevin Spearman and his company, Spearman Design, on February 6, 2020, after Spearman pitched a "one-stop shop" concept. Spearman promised cost transparency, specific markup rates, and the ability to verify all costs and expenses during their initial meeting. The Darrohs chose Spearman's services despite higher rates, relying on these promises and his claimed purchasing power. After project completion, the Darrohs requested vendor invoices in December 2020 to verify costs. Spearman delayed for months, finally providing incomplete information in April 2021. During this time, the Darrohs discovered some furniture items were used, not new, including lamp tables over nine years old. Spearman refused to provide full transparency on costs, especially for art and accessories, and denied access to many vendor invoices, breaching his initial promises and raising suspicions of potential interior design fraud.

Injuries

The Darrohs suffered multiple injuries due to the Spearman Defendants' actions. They calculated actual damages of $45,340.68 for items not marked as Art & Accessories, representing charges exceeding the agreed-upon 40% markup. An additional $35,083.20 in damages was identified for items marked as Art