Jonathan Lindsey v. the Money Source

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: October 30, 2025
• Docket: 01-25-00021-CV
• Status: Published

Opinion

Opinion issued October 30, 2025

In The

Court of Appeals For The

First District of Texas ———————————— NO. 01-25-00021-CV ——————————— JONATHAN LINDSEY, Appellant V. THE MONEY SOURCE, INC., Appellee

On Appeal from the 434th District Court Fort Bend County, Texas Trial Court Case No. 21-DCV-288436

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Appellant Jonathan Lindsey brought this case to challenge the foreclosure

sale of his home. On November 6, 2024, an associate judge of the trial court

signed a summary-judgment order in favor of Appellee The Money Source, Inc. On November 14, 2024, the associate judge signed a non-suit order purporting to

be a final judgment. It does not appear the district court ever signed these orders.1

An associate judge’s judgment is not appealable until the referring court

signs it. See TEX. GOV’T CODE § 54A.116(b) (“[T]he date an order or judgment by

the referring court is signed is the controlling date for the purposes of appeal to or

request for other relief from a court of appeals or the supreme court.”); Rodriguez

v. Slagle, No. 05-23-00547-CV, 2023 WL 6936912, at *1 (Tex. App.—Dallas Oct.

20, 2023,pet. dism’d w.o.j.) (mem. op.) (dismissing appeal because “an associate

judge’s judgment is not appealable until signed by the referring court”). Nothing

in the record indicates the district court signed either the summary-judgment order

or the non-suit order.

Accordingly, on September 18, 2025, we requested a written response from

the parties explaining why we have jurisdiction over this appeal, to be filed within

ten days of the request. We stated that after expiration of the ten-day period, “the

appeal may be dismissed for want of jurisdiction without further notice.” Neither

party filed a response.

Because the record does not contain a final judgment signed by the referring

court, and because neither party responded to our request, we dismiss this appeal

1 There is also no indication in the record that the district court referred this case to the associate judge. 2 for want of jurisdiction. See TEX. GOV’T CODE § 54A.116; TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3(a),

42.3(c).

PER CURIAM

Panel consists of Justices Guerra, Guiney, and Johnson.