Nashville Studio Wins Battle Against City's Building Regulations
Toy Box Studio Wins Legal Battle Against Nashville's Discriminatory Home Business Regulations
In a landmark decision, the Tennessee Court of Appeals has struck down restrictions on home-based recording studios in Nashville, marking a significant victory for Elijah "Lij" Shaw, owner of Toy Box Studio, and Pat Raynor, a local hair stylist.
The dispute, known as the Toy Box Studio legal battle, began in late 2017 when Shaw challenged the Nashville Metro Council's ban on business owners receiving clients in their homes. Raynor, a semi-retired widow who runs a one-chair hair salon from her renovated garage, joined Shaw in the lawsuit.
The city's ordinance, passed in 1998, made it illegal for home businesses to serve clients on the property. However, the Institute for Justice and the Beacon Center of Tennessee, who represented Shaw and Raynor, discovered exemptions in the city's business records. For instance, home-based daycares were allowed to serve up to 12 clients a day on the property, while historic-home event venues were permitted to host events several times a week.
Despite the city permitting Shaw and Raynor to have up to six visits a day, they considered the additional requirements imposed on them as invasive and burdensome. These requirements were not being applied to certain other home businesses, leading Shaw and Raynor to argue that visitor restrictions were being applied unequally to their businesses.
The lawsuit was initially filed in response to the ban on business owners receiving clients in their homes. The ordinance imposed steep fines and potential imprisonment for any customers visiting a home business such as a recording studio, hair stylist, or other enterprise.
The case progressed through the courts, with initial rulings dismissing it on justiciability grounds. However, in 2022, the Tennessee Supreme Court overturned the lower court's dismissal, recognizing that the ordinance unfairly treated some home businesses differently.
On August 4, 2025, the Tennessee Court of Appeals reversed a trial court decision that had sided with Nashville Metro. The court ruled that the city had no rational basis to differentiate between exempt and non-exempt home businesses regarding customer visit restrictions. This ruling marked a legal victory for Toy Box Studio and other home-based studios, with the court remanding the case for further proceedings and assessing appeal costs against the city.
The city retains the option to appeal once again to the Tennessee Supreme Court.
The court's decision highlights equal protection concerns, emphasizing that Nashville's ordinance unfairly disadvantaged certain home-based businesses without a legitimate justification. By striking down these restrictive rules on home studios, the ruling strengthens the rights of home-based creative businesses, recognizing their legitimacy and operational needs comparable to exempt businesses.
This legal precedent has implications for other home businesses facing similar city restrictions, potentially prompting Nashville and other municipalities to review or revise ordinances that impose unequal treatment on home-based enterprises.
Shaw, in a recent Facebook post, announced that the cease and desist he received from the city for having a recording studio in 2015 is now null and void, marking a significant milestone in the long-fought battle.
[1] Institute for Justice. (2025). Toy Box Studio v. Nashville. Retrieved from https://www.ij.org/case/toy-box-studio-v-nashville/
[2] Beacon Center of Tennessee. (2025). Toy Box Studio v. Nashville. Retrieved from https://www.beacontn.org/toyboxstudio/
[3] Nashville Scene. (2025). Toy Box Studio Wins Appeal Against Nashville's Home Studio Ban. Retrieved from https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/politics/article/21261313/toy-box-studio-wins-appeal-against-nashvilles-home-studio-ban
- The ruling made by the Tennessee Court of Appeals in the Toy Box Studio case signifies a triumph for the music industry, as it strikes down Nashville's discriminatory home business regulations, specifically concerning recording studios.
- The financial implications of this decision extend beyond Toy Box Studio, as it opens the door for other home-based creative businesses in the entertainment sector to operate without undue restrictions, potentially fueling growth in that industry.
- However, the city of Nashville retains the option to appeal the decision, furthering the debate on the equal treatment of home-based businesses within the entertainment and finance sectors, a discussion with significant repercussions for the broader business community.
