Jose Leija v. Valero Energy Corporation

• Court: Texas Court of Appeals, 4th District (San Antonio)
• Decided: June 24, 2026
• Docket: 04-25-00805-CV
• Status: Published

Opinion

Fourth Court of Appeals San Antonio, Texas MEMORANDUM OPINION No. 04-25-00805-CV

Jose LEIJA, Appellant

v.

VALERO ENERGY CORPORATION, Appellee

From the 57th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas Trial Court No. 2022-CI-14646 Honorable Christine Vasquez Hortick, Judge Presiding

PER CURIAM

Sitting: Lori Massey Brissette, Justice Adrian A. Spears II, Justice H. Todd McCray, Justice

Delivered and Filed: June 24, 2026

DISMISSED FOR WANT OF PROSECUTION

Appellant’s brief was originally due March 9, 2026; however, the court granted an

extension to April 8, 2026. On April 6, 2026, appellant’s counsel, Arnold & Itkin, LLP, filed a

motion to withdraw and further requested an extension of time to file the brief to April 23, 2026.

In their motion, Arnold & Itkin indicated appellant informed them he would be hiring a different

law firm to represent him on appeal. After denying their motion to withdraw without prejudice to

refiling one that complied with Rule 6.5 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, we granted 04-25-00805-CV

the extension to April 23, 2026. However, neither the brief nor a motion for extension of time was

filed.

We therefore ordered appellant, Jose Leija, to file, by May 14, 2026, appellant’s brief and

a written response reasonably explaining his failure to timely file the brief. We admonished

appellant that if he failed to file a brief and the written response by the date ordered, we would

dismiss the appeal for want of prosecution. See TEX. R. APP. P. 38.8(a). Appellant has not filed

the brief or a written response reasonably explaining his failure to timely file it.

Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed.

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