Opinion
Appellate case number: 01-19-00704-CV
12-31-2019
In the Interest of C.J., a Child
ORDER Trial court case number: 2018-00169J Trial court: 313th District Court of Harris County
This is an accelerated appeal from an order terminating the parental rights of appellant, S.W. On November 14, 2019, we abated this appeal and remanded the case to the trial court to immediately hold a hearing on appellant's retained counsel's motion to withdraw and to determine if appellant is indigent, to appoint new counsel to represent appellant if she is indigent, or to determine whether appellant may proceed pro se, after advising her of the dangers of self-representation.
Retained counsel's motion to withdraw stated that appellant "is indigent and c[ould] no longer afford retained counsel." The motion also stated that appellant "request[ed] a court appointed counsel to perfect her appeal."
The trial court clerk has filed a supplemental clerk's record that includes the trial court's order, signed on December 3, 2019, finding that appellant had consented to the motion to withdraw filed by her retained counsel and that another attorney, Karlene Poll, "ha[d] entered a Notice of Appearance of Counsel" for appellant. The trial court also found that appellant "d[id] not lack funds to pay for costs." Thus, the trial court granted retained counsel's motion to withdraw, substituted Karlene Poll as appellant's attorney of record, and ordered appellant to pay all costs on appeal.
We reinstate the appeal on the Court's active docket.
The Clerk of this Court is directed to add Karlene Poll as counsel for appellant on the docket of this Court.
On December 18, 2019, appellant filed a motion for review of the trial court's December 3, 2019 order sustaining the contest to her statement of inability to pay costs. See TEX. R. CIV. P. 145 (g)(1), (2) ("The motion must be filed within 10 days after the trial court's order is signed."). Appellant has also filed an Unopposed Motion for Extension of Time to File Motion for Review of Trial Court's Order Sustaining Objection to Indigency, requesting that this Court "extend the time for challenging the trial court's order" until December 18, 2019. See TEX. R. CIV. P. 145 (g)(2) ("The court of appeals may extend the deadline by 15 days if the declarant demonstrates good cause for the extension in writing.").
We grant appellant's motion to extend time to file her motion for review of the trial court's December 3, 2019 order to December 18, 2019.
Appellant's motion for review of the trial court's December 3, 2019 order remains pending.
Because this appeal involves the termination of the parent-child relationship, the Court is required to bring appellant's appeal to final disposition within 180 days of September 18, 2019, the date the notice of appeal was filed in this proceeding, so far as reasonably possible. See TEX. R. JUD. ADMIN. 6.2, reprinted in TEX. GOV'T CODE ANN., tit. 2, subtit. F app.
It is so ORDERED. Judge's signature: /s/ Julie Countiss
[v] Acting individually [ ] Acting for the Court Date: December 31, 2019