Opinion
NUMBER 13-14-00606-CV
02-04-2015
CRISTINA CASTANEDA, Appellant, v. DANNETTE ZUNIGA, Appellee.
On appeal from the County Court at Law No. 2 of Hidalgo County, Texas.
ORDER ABATING APPEAL
Before Chief Justice Valdez and Justices Rodriguez and Garza
Order Per Curiam
Appellant, Cristina Castaneda, appearing pro se, has filed a "Motion to Proceed in Indigence" which contains an affidavit of indigence. Accordingly, we ABATE this appeal and REMAND the cause to the trial court. We issue this order, accompanied by appellant's "Motion to Proceed in Indigence," to the trial court and the court reporter, and all parties.
We order that pursuant to Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 20.1(e), the trial court clerk, the court reporter, or any party to this cause must challenge appellant's claim of indigence by filing a contest to appellant's declaration of inability to pay costs in the trial court within 10 days from the date of this order. See TEX. R. APP. P. 20.1(e).
If a contest is timely filed, we ORDER the trial court to conduct a hearing or sign an order extending the time to conduct a hearing within 10 days after any contest is filed. See TEX. R. APP. P. 20.1(i)(2)(B) ("The trial court must either conduct a hearing or sign an order extending the time to conduct a hearing . . . within 10 days after the trial court received a contest referred from the appellate court."). However, the trial court may not order the time for conducting a hearing on a contest to be extended for more than 20 days from the date the order is signed. See TEX. R. APP. P. 20.1(i)(3).
If a contest is timely filed, we ORDER the trial court, within 40 days from the date of this order, to prepare a written order and written findings of fact and conclusions of law regarding its indigence determination. We further ORDER the trial court clerk, as soon as practicable but in no event later than 60 days from the date of this order, to file a supplemental clerk's record, containing (1) the contest; (2) the trial court's order; and (3) the trial court's findings of fact and conclusions of law. The court reporter is ORDERED to prepare and file the reporter's record of the trial court's hearing as soon as practicable but in no event later than 60 days from the date of this order.
If no contest is filed or a contest is filed untimely, we ORDER the trial court clerk to file a supplemental clerk's record containing a certificate that states either no contest was filed or a contest was filed untimely within 20 days from the date of this order.
PER CURIAM Delivered and filed the 4th day of February, 2015.