Danielle Braverman and her husband, David Reis, bought this home at 6600 E. Ida Ave. in Greenwood Village in 2020. (BusinessDen file)
A jury chosen Monday in Centennial must now determine whether an interior designer is to blame for the botched remodel of her neighbor’s mansion in Greenwood Village and whether she doctored invoices and stole high-end furniture from the pricy project.
Danielle Braverman, a fashion model, and her husband, David Reis, say the designer Hayley Servatius and her young company, HLS Designs, stole from and defrauded them while renovating 6600 E. Ida Ave. They are seeking $437,000 in direct costs and far more in punitive damages.
But Servatius and HLS are countersuing the couple, who live 500 feet from Servatius and her husband. The interior designer says her former clients greatly expanded the scope of the project, refused to pay invoices and then threatened to “destroy” HLS Designs.
Any shoddy work on the home is the fault of Braverman and Reis’ general contractor, Soderstrom Construction, and subcontractors it hired, according to Servatius.
Servatius says Braverman and Reis “became extremely difficult to work with” in 2022 and began “making unreasonable demands,” which Servatius spent more than $15,000 of her own money trying to meet. They have also not paid her for two months of work that Servatius completed before she quit the project, according to the interior designer.
If the half-dozen Arapahoe County jurors chosen Monday side with the owners of 6600 E. Ida, their verdict could cost the defendants millions. Last summer, Judge Don Toussaint agreed to let the homeowners seek punitive damages after finding at least some evidence that Servatius doctored invoices to inflate furniture costs, then pocketed a $34,000 difference.
During this week’s trial, which is scheduled to last through Friday, jurors may see flirty text messages between Servatius and John Soderstrom, owner of Soderstrom Construction. What they will not hear is any suggestion that those texts are evidence of an affair.
Last month, Toussaint decided that any innuendo about an affair was inappropriate and would not be allowed at the trial, rejecting Braverman and Reis’ argument that they be permitted to present their theory that the remodel was botched because its designer and builder were distracted by the relationship. Servatius adamantly denies having an affair.
“You’re saying today under oath that you’ve never had a romantic relationship with Mr. Soderstrom?” an attorney for Braverman and Reis asked Servatius on March 4.
“No. I am a God-fearing woman,” the interior designer responded during a deposition. “No. I have never had a romantic relationship with anybody other than my husband.”
The jury will also not hear from Jessica LaRusso, editor-in-chief of 5280 Magazine. Braverman and Reis sought to have her testify that their home was never to be featured in the magazine, which they say Servatius falsely promised. Toussaint determined last week that LaRusso is a journalist and protected by law from testifying about her sources.
Braverman and Reis are represented by attorneys Laura Martinez, Matthew Rork and Joshua Berry from Fairfield & Woods, a Denver firm. Servatius and HLS’ lawyers are Caleb Meyer and Simone Montoya with Messner Reeves, also in Denver.
