Opinion
No. 10-16-00351-CV
09-06-2017
IN THE INTEREST OF C.A. AND C.A., CHILDREN
From the County Court at Law No. 1 Brazos County, Texas
Trial Court No. 14-002766-CV-CCL1
ORDER
An attorney representing Appellee in the underlying proceeding filed a motion in the trial court to seal the court records in this case. The trial court obliged and signed an order sealing "all documents ... except those documents that are required by law to be recorded in the minutes of the Court." The order further stated, "The documents shall not be opened or released except on appropriate court order."
Appellant subsequently filed this appeal and later filed her Original Appellant's Brief with citations to the sealed record. The brief, however, contains an appendix that includes documents not only that the trial court sealed but also that are not to be filed unless the sensitive data is redacted. See TEX. R. APP. P. 9.9.
Thereafter, Appellee filed a motion for leave to check out the sealed record, stating that the record is necessary to complete his Appellee's Brief. Appellee then filed a supplemental motion for leave to check out the sealed record, stating that he still needs access to the sealed reporter's records but that he has received the following clerk's records from the trial court clerk:
• Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed December 14, 2016;Appellee also filed a motion requesting an extension of time until September 1, 2017, or until two weeks after he receives a complete record, whichever is later, to file his Appellee's Brief in this Court.
• Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed February 13, 2017;
• Second Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed April 19, 2017;
• Third Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed June 21, 2017;
• Corrected Third Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed June 23, 2017; and
• Fourth Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed July 14, 2017.
We abated this proceeding so that Appellee could present a motion for leave to check out the sealed record in this proceeding to the trial court, and we ordered the trial court to hold a hearing on Appellee's motion within 14 days of the date of the order.
Appellee subsequently filed in the trial court a motion to modify the trial court's sealing order. The motion sought modification of the sealing order to permit this Court to release to Appellee the sealed reporter's record in this appeal, as well as any clerk's or reporter's records that may be filed in the future in any court proceedings involving these parties. The motion further sought modification of the sealing order to prohibit any dissemination of the sealed record or any portion thereof by the parties to any third parties, except their counsel of record in these proceedings. Finally, the motion stated that no evidentiary hearing was required.
After considering Appellee's motion and exhibits, Appellant's response, and Appellee's reply, the trial court granted Appellee's motion to modify the sealing order without a hearing. The trial court modified its sealing order as follows:
1. [Appellee] is entitled to obtain the complete sealed court reporter's record now on file at the Tenth Court of Appeals, under conditions specified by that Court, as well as any additional clerk's or reporter's records that may be filed in the future in any appellate or other court proceedings involving the parties to this case. By this order it is intended that both parties shall have equal access to the appellate records.
2. [Appellant] and [Appellee] are prohibited from disseminating the sealed record or any portion thereof to any third parties, except their counsel of record in these proceedings.
This case is reinstated. In light of the foregoing, Appellee's motion and supplemental motion for leave to check out the sealed record are granted to the following extent: Appellee or his counsel of record in this appeal may check out an electronic copy of the complete reporter's record and an electronic copy of any supplemental clerk's or reporter's records filed in this Court after August 7, 2017, the date that the trial court signed its order granting Appellee's motion to modify sealing order. As of the date of this Order, Appellee or his counsel of record in this appeal may therefore check out an electronic copy of the following clerk's and reporter's records:
• Reporter's Record, 9 volumes, filed May 3, 2017;
• Supplemental Reporter's Record, 1 volume, filed July 6, 2017;
• Fifth Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed August 7, 2017; and
• Corrected Fifth Supplemental Clerk's Record, 1 volume, filed August 7, 2017.
Appellee's second motion to extend the time to file his brief is also granted. Appellee's Brief is due 14 days from the date of this Order.
Finally, within 7 days from the date of this Order, Appellant is ordered to file an amended appendix to her brief that complies with the trial court's sealing order. The current appendix to Appellant's Brief will be stricken either upon the filing of the amended appendix or upon the expiration of the 7 days, whichever occurs first.
PER CURIAM Before Chief Justice Gray, Justice Davis, and Justice Scoggins
Order issued and filed September 6, 2017
Do not publish