in Re Flor De Jesus Portillo

Opinion

Petition for Writ of Mandamus Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed October 27, 2011.

In The

Fourteenth Court of Appeals

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NO. 14-11-00520-CV

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IN RE FLOR DE JESUS PORTILLO, Relator

ORIGINAL PROCEEDING WRIT OF MANDAMUS 309th District Court Harris County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No. 2009-68967

MEMORANDUM OPINION

On June 16, 2011, relator, Flor De Jesus Portillo, filed a petition for writ of mandamus in this court. See Tex. Gov’t Code § 22.221. Relator asked this court to order the Honorable Sheri Y. Dean, presiding judge of the 309th District Court of Harris County, Texas, to set aside her order signed June 10, 2011, entered in trial court cause number 2009-68967, styled In the Interest of V.L.P., a child. Relator also filed an emergency motion asking that we stay the trial court’s order. See Tex. R. App. P. 52.10(a). On June 16, 2011, this court granted relator’s motion and stayed the trial court’s order. The court denied relator’s subsequent motion to stay the trial of the underlying proceeding.

On October 18, 2011, the real party in interest, Victor Portillo, filed a motion to dismiss the petition for writ of mandamus. The underlying suit affecting the parent-child relationship was tried to the court on September 7, 8, and 9, 2011. On October 14, 2011, the trial court signed a final order. The final order has superseded the June 10, 2011, order that is the subject of this petition, rendering this proceeding moot. See Roccaforte v. Jefferson County, 341 S.W.3d 919, 924 (Tex. 2011) (interlocutory order merges into final judgment, which may implicitly modify interlocutory order without doing so expressly). This court’s stay order issued June 16, 2011, has also been rendered moot. Moreover, now that a final order has been signed, relator has an adequate appellate remedy to challenge the order. See Walker v. Packer, 827 S.W.2d 833, 840 (Tex. 1992) (mandamus relief is not available when an adequate appellate remedy exists).

Accordingly, we grant the real party in interest’s motion and order the petition for writ of mandamus dismissed.

PER CURIAM

Panel consists of Chief Justice Hedges and Justices Seymore and Boyce.