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Abatement Order filed March 31, 2020. In The Fourteenth Court of Appeals ____________ NO. 14-19-00469-CV ____________ AZHAR M. CHAUDHARY, Appellant V. WENSHAN ZHANG, Appellee On Appeal from County Court at Law No. 5 Fort Bend County, Texas Trial Court Cause No. 19-CCV-064611 ABATEMENT ORDER This appeal is from a judgment signed May 31, 2019. Appellant filed a notice of appeal on June 12, 2019. Appellant filed a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs in the trial court. “A party who files a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs cannot be required to pay costs except by order of the court as provided by this rule.” See Tex. R. Civ. P. 145(a). The clerks’ record filed January 2, 2020, did not contain a contest to appellant’s statement and did not reflect that appellant has been ordered to pay costs pursuant to Rule 145. Accordingly, on February 4, 2020, the official court reporter for the 234th District Court was directed to file the reporter’s record by March 5, 2020. See Tex. R. App. P. 35.1. On March 3, 2020, the court reporter filed an information sheet which states a contest of inability to afford payment of court costs was set for a hearing on October 17, 2019, but appellant moved for a continuance. On March 5, 2020, appellant filed a motion for extension of time to file the reporter’s record. Appellant’s motion states the court reporter filed a contest on October 8, 2019, “which is pending in the trial court.” Accordingly, we abate this appeal and direct the judge of County Court at Law No. 5 to conduct a hearing on the contest filed by the court reporter to appellant’s statement of inability to afford payment of court costs. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 145(f). We order the court to prepare a record, in the form of a reporter’s record, of the hearing. The judge shall order the trial clerk to forward to this court a supplemental clerk’s record containing the trial court’s findings, any rulings, and/or any orders on the contest. See
id. The hearingrecord and supplemental clerk’s record shall be filed with the clerk of this court within 45 days of the date of this order. The appeal is abated, treated as a closed case, and removed from this court’s active docket. The appeal will be reinstated on this court’s active docket when the hearing record and supplemental clerk’s records are filed in this court. The court will also consider an appropriate motion to reinstate the appeal filed by either party, or the court may reinstate the appeal on its own motion. PER CURIAM Panel consists of Chief Justice Frost and Justices Jewell and Spain.
Document Info
Docket Number: 14-19-00469-CV
Filed Date: 3/31/2020
Precedential Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 3/31/2020