Juneth Steubing v. City of Killeen, Texas

Opinion

TEXAS COURT OF APPEALS, THIRD DISTRICT, AT AUSTIN

NO. 03-09-00362-CV

Harvey Leroy Sossamon, III, Appellant v.

Brad Livingston, Director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Appellee

FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF TRAVIS COUNTY, 200TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT NO. D-1-GN-08-002020, HONORABLE STEPHEN YELENOSKY, JUDGE PRESIDING

MEMORANDUM OPINION

On September 21, 2009, we notified appellant Harvey Leroy Sossamon, III that the appellate record in this case did not appear to contain a final or otherwise appealable order. This Court’s jurisdiction is limited to the review of final judgments and certain interlocutory orders signed by the trial court. See Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. §§ 51.012, .014 (West 2008); see also Lehmann v. Har-Con Corp., 39 S.W.3d 191, 195 (Tex. 2001). Sossamon’s response to this notice fails to demonstrate that a final or otherwise appealable order has been signed by the trial court. Sossamon seeks to appeal from the trial court’s order permitting him to take a pre-suit deposition and denying a motion for a protective order filed by the individual to be deposed. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 202.1. Specifically, Sossamon wishes to appeal from the following language in the order: “However, Plaintiff [Sossamon] must follow the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, including the rules regarding costs and fees.” A trial court’s order stating that the applicable procedural rules shall apply

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to a pre-suit deposition is not an appealable interlocutory order. See Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 51.014. No appealable judgment or order appears in the record. Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed for want of jurisdiction.

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Diane M. Henson, Justice

Before Chief Justice Jones, Justices Waldrop and Henson Dismissed for Want of Jurisdiction Filed: October 15, 2009