Opinion
01-24-00446-CV
11-14-2024
Kevin Brady v. Progressive County Mutual Insurance Company
County Civil Court at Law No. 1 of Harris County No. 1223924
ORDER
David Gunn, Judge
Appellant Kevin Brady, proceeding pro se, appealed from the trial court's May 21, 2024 order granting appellee, Progressive County Mutual Insurance Company's "Motion to Dismiss with Prejudice." The clerk's record was filed on July 11, 2024, and on July 25, 2024, the appellate record was completed after the official court reporter for the County Civil Court at Law No. 1 of Harris County notified the Court that no reporter's record was taken. Accordingly, appellant's brief was due on August 26, 2024. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.6(a).
On July 15, 2024, prior to the completion of the appellate record, appellant filed a document with this Court. In the certificate of service for the document, appellant identified the document as a "brief requesting oral argument." To the extent appellant intended this document as his appellant's brief, his brief was prematurely filed. Additionally, appellant's brief fails to comply with the requirements of a brief as set by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.1.
A party's failure to comply with the requirements of Rule 38.1 can result in the Court striking a brief, and ultimately, in dismissal of an appeal. See Bennett v. Jenkins, No. 01-21-00557-CV, 2022 WL 3268531, at *2 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] Aug. 11, 2022, no pet.) (per curiam) (dismissing appeal for want of prosecution where pro se appellant failed to file "corrected brief" after Court struck brief for failure to comply with Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 38.1). Appellant's brief fails to comply with Rule 38.1.
First, appellant's brief fails to include any "appropriate headings" as required by the rules. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.1. Appellant's brief further lacks any of the sections required by the rules, and we therefore strike appellant's July 15, 2024 brief for failure to comply with the briefing requirements set forth in Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 38.1.
Appellant is directed to file a corrected brief that complies with the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, within ten days of the date of this order. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.1, 38.6(a). To the extent appellant fails to file a corrected brief as directed in this order, this appeal will be subject to dismissal. See Tex. R. App. P. 42.3(b)(c); see also Bennett, 2022 WL 3268531, at *2.
Additionally, on July 26, 2024, appellant filed a document with this Court titled "Plaintiff Request for Relief/Reporter refusing to submit record." It is not clear what relief, if any, is requested by appellant in this filing. The document appears to request that the Court "order [the] lower court to award damages of $73,990.98."
At this stage of appellant's appeal, the Court cannot grant such relief. Accordingly, to the extent appellant's filing requests the Court order the trial court to "award damages of $73,990.98," such relief is denied.
Appellant's filing further notes that the court reporter has not yet or is "refusing to submit" the reporter's record. Appellant's filing does not specifically seek any relief from the Court regarding the reporter's record. However, as noted above, on July 25, 2024, the official court reporter for the County Civil Court at Law No. 1 filed an "Information Sheet by Court Reporters" notifying the Court that no record was taken in the underlying case. Therefore, to the extent appellant's filing requests that the Court take any action regarding the reporter's record, such relief is denied.
It is so ORDERED.