Opinion
No. 06-17-00031-CV
04-06-2017
SANDRA JOHNSON, INDIVIDUALLY; SANDRA JOHNSON, DEPENDENT ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE ESTATE OF DAWSON E. JOHNSON, Appellant v. JASON JOHNSON; TEXARKANA COMMUNITY COLLEGE; VALIC RETIREMENT SERVICES COMPANY; ADMIN PARTNERS, LLC, Appellees
On Appeal from the 202nd District Court Bowie County, Texas
Trial Court No. 16C1072-202 Before Morriss, C.J., Moseley and Burgess, JJ.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Sandra Johnson appeals from an order dismissing her lawsuit against Texarkana Community College (TCC) based on TCC's plea to the jurisdiction. The order dismissing Johnson's claims against TCC was signed November 15, 2016, and Johnson's notice of appeal was filed February 13, 2017.
Our jurisdiction is limited to appeals from final judgments, except as explicitly allowed by statute. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 51.012 (West 2015), § 51.014 (West Supp. 2016). The order of dismissal from which Johnson appeals is not a final judgment in that it does not dispose of all claims and parties. However, Section 51.014 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code grants this Court jurisdiction over appeals from certain specific interlocutory orders. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 51.014. An interlocutory order granting or denying a governmental entities' plea to the jurisdiction, which is precisely what the trial court's November 15 order in this case is, can be validly appealed from under Section 51.014(a)(8) of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code; however, such an appeal must still be properly perfected under Rules 25.1, 26.1, and 28.1 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.1, 26.1, 28.1.
Under Rule 28.1 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, "[a]ppeals from interlocutory orders (when allowed by statute)" are deemed accelerated appeals. TEX. R. APP. P. 28.1(a). Rule 28.1 further states,
(b) Perfection of Accelerated Appeal. Unless otherwise provided by statute, an accelerated appeal is perfected by filing a notice of appeal in compliance with Rule 25.1 within the time allowed by Rule 26.1(b) or as extended by Rule 26.3.
Filing a motion for new trial, any other post-trial motion, or a request for findings of fact will not extend the time to perfect an accelerated appeal.TEX. R. APP. P. 28.1(b). Finally, Rule 26.1 requires that, "in an accelerated appeal, the notice of appeal must be filed within 20 days after the judgment or order is signed." TEX. R. APP. P. 26.1(b). Here, the order dismissing Johnson's claims against TCC was signed November 15, 2016, and Johnson's notice of appeal was filed February 13, 2017, ninety days after the order was signed. While Johnson did file a request for findings of fact and conclusions of law, that request did not operate to extend the deadline for filing the notice of appeal since this is an accelerated appeal. Consequently, the notice of appeal is untimely.
When this Court received the record and determined that a jurisdictional defect existed, we provided Johnson with an opportunity to explain how we had jurisdiction over the appeal. A response was filed, but no explanation was provided that could cure this defect.
Johnson's notice of appeal was not timely filed; consequently, this Court is without jurisdiction over the appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.1, 26.1, 28.1.
We dismiss this appeal for want of jurisdiction.
Josh R. Morriss, III
Chief Justice Date Submitted: April 5, 2017
Date Decided: April 6, 2017