Opinion
NO. 14-19-00977-CV
01-12-2021
DEMETRIS JOHNSON-WILLIAMS A/K/A DEMETRIS JOHNSON AND RASHAUNDA SPEARS, Appellants v. IDLEWILDE APARTMENTS, Appellee
On Appeal from the County Civil Court at Law No. 2 Harris County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. 1145227
MEMORANDUM OPINION
In this forcible-detainer action, the pro se appellants Demetris Johnson-Williams a.k.a. Demetris Johnson and Rashaunda Spears appeal what appears to be a post-answer default judgment. The clerk's record shows that the justice court granted appellee Idlewilde Apartments a default judgment, which Johnson-Williams, individually and perhaps also as next friend of her adult daughter Spears, appealed to Harris County's County Court at Law No. 2. The county court at law's final judgment recites that at the trial de novo, Idlewilde Apartments "appeared in person and by attorney," but the judgment does not indicate that Johnson-Williams or Spears appeared personally or through counsel.
Courts may reverse a post-answer default if (1) the defendant's failure to appear was unintentional and was not the result of conscious indifference, (2) the defendant has a meritorious defense, and (3) a new trial would not cause delay or undue prejudice. See Matthis v. Lockwood, 166 S.W.3d 743, 744 (per curiam). Johnson-Williams and Spears have addressed none of these factors. Their appellate briefs contain no mention of the trial or of their failure to appear, no argument, and no citations to the record or to the law. They have identified no errors by the trial court, and they do not challenge the legal or factual sufficiency of the evidence.
Moreover, there is nothing for us to review. On appeal, a reporter's record is required to challenge a ruling for which evidence was introduced in open court, but if all the evidence was filed with the clerk and only argument was presented in open court, then the appeal is decided on the clerk's record. See Michiana Easy Livin' Country, Inc. v. Holten, 168 S.W.3d 777, 782 (Tex. 2005) Here, however, no reporter's record exists, and the clerk's record contains no evidence pertaining to the merits of the case.
Idlewilde has appended some documents to its brief, but with exceptions that are inapplicable to this case, we cannot consider material that is not part of the appellate record. See Horie v. Law Offices of Art Dula, 560 S.W.3d 425, 439-40 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2018, no pet.); WorldPeace v. Comm'n for Lawyer Discipline, 183 S.W.3d 451, 465 n.23 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2005, pet. denied).
Given the absence of a reporter's record, we must presume the evidence supports the trial court's ruling. See In re D.S., 602 S.W.3d 504, 510 n.9 (Tex. 2020). Indeed, Johnson-Williams and Spears concede in their appellate briefs that they owe Idlewilde Apartments rent and late fees.
We accordingly affirm the trial court's judgment.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued an emergency order temporarily halting certain residential evictions for non-payment of rent. See Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions to Prevent the Further Spread of COVID-19, 85 Fed. Reg. 55,292 (Sept. 4, 2020). Although the order remains in effect at this time, it applies only to those adult tenants who provide their landlord with a completed "Declaration Under Penalty of Perjury for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Temporary Halt in Evictions to Prevent Further Spread of COVID-19." See, e.g., https://texaslawhelp.org/article/cdc-eviction-moratorium. Such declarations are not required to be filed in court, but out of an abundance of caution, we have examined the record and found no indication that, as of the date of this opinion, Johnson-Williams or Spears have provided the landlord with such declarations. Our disposition of this appeal does not affect the right of any tenant who meets the CDC's eligibility requirements to deliver such a declaration to the landlord while the emergency order remains in effect. --------
/s/ Tracy Christopher
Chief Justice Panel consists of Chief Justice Christopher and Justices Jewell and Poissant.