Opinion
NO. 14-17-00706-CV
01-04-2018
AMERICAN SURGICAL ASSISTANTS, INC., Appellant v. MUBASHIR CHAUDHRY AND UNIVERSAL SURGICAL ASSISTANTS, INC., Appellees
On Appeal from the 434th Judicial District Court Fort Bend County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. 16-DCV-235905
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This is an appeal from an order of dismissal signed July 24, 2017. On December 6, 2017, appellant filed a motion to dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction because the trial court granted appellant's motion to correct or vacate inadvertent order of dismissal.
On October 9, 2017, the trial court signed an order vacating the July 24, 2017 order of dismissal and reinstating the case below. In its October 9, 2017 order, the trial court found, pursuant to Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 306a, that appellant's counsel did not receive notice of the July 24, 2017 order or acquire acknowledge of the order until August 29, 2017. Therefore, the trial court found that the deadline for filing a motion to modify or correct the order began August 29, 2017, and expired September 28, 2017. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 306a(4), 329b. Appellant filed a motion to correct or vacate the dismissal order on August 30, 2017. Because appellant's motion was timely filed, the trial court's plenary power was extended. See United Residential Properties, L.P. v. Theis, 378 S.W.3d 552, 558 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2012, no pet.) (holding that a properly filed and granted motion under Rule 306a restarts the post-judgment timetable).
By granting appellant's motion to vacate, the trial court maintained its plenary jurisdiction over the case and invalidated the prior final order of dismissal. Without a final order, there is no basis for this court to exercise appellate jurisdiction. See Lehmann v. Har-Con Corp., 39 S.W.3d 191, 195 (Tex. 2001).
Accordingly, appellant's motion to dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction is granted, and the appeal is ordered dismissed.
PER CURIAM Panel consists of Chief Justice Frost and Justices Busby and Wise.