in Re: Texas Revocable Living Trust of Shirly Jean Nixon

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: February 15, 2023
• Docket: 05-23-00062-CV
• Status: Published

Opinion

Order entered February 15, 2023

In The Court of Appeals Fifth District of Texas at Dallas

No. 05-23-00062-CV

IN RE: TEXAS REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST OF SHIRLY JEAN NIXON

On Appeal from the County Court at Law No. 2 Kaufman County, Texas Trial Court Cause No. 111476-CC2

ORDER

The trial court signed a final judgment on November 8, 2022. Appellant

Kristi Lynn Simmang Novack filed a motion for new trial on January 17, 2023.

Included therein is a Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 306a motion to extend

deadlines because her counsel did not get notice of the judgment until December

19, 2022. See TEX. R. CIV. P. 306(a)(4). The record before this Court reflects that

the trial court has not conducted a hearing on the motion and made the requisite

finding of the date when appellant or her counsel first either received notice or

acquired actual knowledge that the judgment was signed. Accordingly, we ORDER the trial court to conduct a hearing, WITHIN

THIRTY DAYS of the date of this order, on appellant’s rule 306a motion. See

TEX. R. CIV. P. 306(a)(5). We further ORDER the trial court to sign a written

order that finds the date when appellant or her counsel first either received notice

or acquired actual knowledge that the judgment was signed. See TEX. R. APP. P.

4.2(c).

We ORDER Shelly Dearing, Official Court Reporter for County Court at

Law No. 2, to file the reporter’s record of the hearing WITHIN FORTY DAYS of

the date of this order.

We ORDER Laura Hughes, Kaufman County Clerk, to file a supplemental

clerk’s record containing the trial court’s order on appellant’s rule 306a motion

WITHIN THIRTY-FIVE DAYS of the date of this order.

We DIRECT the Clerk of this Court to send a copy of this order to the

Honorable Bobby Rich, Presiding Judge of County Court at Law No. 2 of

Kaufman County; Ms. Hughes; Ms. Dearing; and, all parties.

We ABATE this appeal to allow the trial court an opportunity to comply

with this order. The appeal will be reinstated in FORTY DAYS or when the

supplemental clerk’s record is filed with the requested order from the trial court,

whichever occurs sooner.

/s/ ROBERT D. BURNS, III CHIEF JUSTICE