Opinion
NO. 14-17-00421-CV
06-01-2017
On Appeal from the 313th District Court Harris County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. 2016-02643J
ORDER
This is an accelerated appeal from a judgment in a suit in which the termination of the parent-child relationship is at issue. The judgment was signed May 2, 2017. The notice of appeal was due within 20 days, which was May 22, 2017. See Tex. R. App. P. 26.1(b), 28.4(a). Appellant D.F., however, filed her notice of appeal on May 26, 2017, a date within 15 days of the due date for the notice of appeal.
A motion for extension of time is necessarily implied when the perfecting instrument is filed within 15 days of its due date. Verburgt v. Dorner, 959 S.W.2d 615, 617 (Tex. 1997). Appellant did not file a motion to extend time to file the notice of appeal. While an extension may be implied, appellant is still obligated to come forward with a reasonable explanation to support the late filing. See Miller v. Greenpark Surgery Center Assocs., Ltd., 974 S.W.2d 805, 808 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1998, no pet.).
Accordingly, we ORDER appellant D.F. to file a proper motion to extend time to file the notice of appeal by June 12, 2017. See Tex. R. App. P. 26.3, 10.5(b). If appellant does not comply with this order, we will dismiss the appeal. See Tex. R. App. P. 42.3.
PER CURIAM