Gloria Dean Clark v. American Casualty Company of Reading, Pennsylvania ( 2020 )

DISMISS and Opinion Filed April 23, 2020
In The
Court of Appeals
Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
No. 05-20-00326-CV
GLORIA DEAN CLARK, Appellant
V.
AMERICAN CASUALTY COMPANY OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA,
Appellee
On Appeal from the 95th District Court
Dallas County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. DC-19-09864
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before Justices Myers, Partida-Kipness, and Reichek
Opinion by Justice Myers
The Court questioned its jurisdiction over this appeal because it appeared the
notice of appeal was untimely. We instructed appellant to file a letter brief
addressing the Court’s concern with an opportunity for appellee to file a response.
When a party does not file a timely post-judgment motion extending the
appellate timetable, a notice of appeal is due thirty days or, with an extension
motion, forty-five days after the date the judgment is signed. See TEX. R. APP. P.
26.1, 26.3. Without a timely filed notice of appeal, this Court lacks jurisdiction.
See id. 25.1(b).
The trial court signed the dismissal order on September 13, 2019. Because
appellant did not file a timely post-judgment motion, the notice of appeal was due
on Monday, October 14, 2019. See id. 4.1(a), 26.1. Appellant filed her notice of
appeal along with a motion for extension on March 9, 2020. To obtain an
extension, however, the notice of appeal must be filed within fifteen days of the
deadline. See id. 26.3. Appellant filed the notice of appeal more than four months
past the deadline.1 Although appellant filed a brief, she addressed only the merits
of the appeal and not the jurisdictional issue.
Because the notice of appeal was untimely, we dismiss the appeal for want
of jurisdiction. See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3(a).
/Lana Myers/
LANA MYERS
JUSTICE
200236F.P05
1
In the extension motion, appellant asserts that she did not get notice of the judgment until March 2,
2020. A party may obtain an extension of the post-judgment deadlines if it does not obtain actual
knowledge of the judgment within twenty days, but not more than ninety days, after it is signed by
following the procedure set forth in rule 306a of the rules of civil procedure. See TEX. R. CIV. P. 306a.
Because March 2nd is more than ninety days after the date the order of dismissal was signed, the relief
provided in rule 306a(4) is unavailable to appellant.
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Court of Appeals
Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
JUDGMENT
GLORIA DEAN CLARK, Appellant On Appeal from the 95th District
Court, Dallas County, Texas
No. 05-20-00326-CV V. Trial Court Cause No. DC-19-09864.
Opinion delivered by Justice Myers.
AMERICAN CASUALTY Justices Partida-Kipness and Reichek
COMPANY OF READING, participating.
PENNSYLVANIA, Appellee
In accordance with this Court’s opinion of this date, the appeal is
DISMISSED.
It is ORDERED that appellee AMERICAN CASUALTY COMPANY OF
READING, PENNSYLVANIA recover its costs of this appeal from appellant
GLORIA DEAN CLARK.
Judgment entered this 23rd day of April, 2020.
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