State Bar of Texas v. Tinning

875 S.W.2d 403, 1994 WL 94108
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 28, 1994
Docket13-92-270-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 875 S.W.2d 403 (State Bar of Texas v. Tinning) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Bar of Texas v. Tinning, 875 S.W.2d 403, 1994 WL 94108 (Tex. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinions

OPINION ON MOTION FOR REHEARING

FEDERICO G. HINOJOSA, Jr., Justice.

We issued our original opinion in this case on October 14,1993. We withdraw our original opinion and substitute the following as this court’s opinion.

Appellant and appellee have both filed motions for rehearing. Appellant argues that the general four-year statute of limitations does not apply to disciplinary actions. We grant appellant’s motion for rehearing, reverse the judgment of the trial court, and remand the case to the trial court for further proceedings. We deny appellee’s motion for rehearing.

The trial court entered summary judgment against the State Bar of Texas in a disciplinary proceeding brought against William Tinning. By a single point of error, the State Bar complains that the trial court erred by entering summary judgment against it.

The State Bar filed a disciplinary petition against Tinning on July 6,1990, alleging that he split fees with Melvin Atkins, a non-lawyer, in fifteen cases between October 1984 and August 1986. The State Bar alleged that Tinning violated Disciplinary Rules (DR) 1-102(A)(6) and 2-102. On August 20, 1990, the State Bar amended its petition and alleged that Tinning violated DR 3-102, not DR 2-102. On October 18, 1991, the State Bar again amended its petition and specifically alleged that Tinning had violated 1) DR 1-102(A)(1) (by violating a disciplinary rule), 2) DR 1-102(A)(6) (by engaging in conduct that adversely reflects on his fitness to practice law), and 3) DR 3-102 (by sharing legal fees with a non-lawyer).

Tinning moved for summary judgment on the following grounds: 1) that the disciplinary proceeding was barred by limitations, 2) that he did not engage in fee splitting, 3) that DR 3-102 is unconstitutional a) by being [406]*406vague and indefinite and b) because State Bar disciplinary procedures violate due process, and 4) that the State Bar should be estopped on equitable principles. The State Bar did not timely respond to the motion for summary judgment, and the trial court granted the motion.

In order to sustain a summary judgment, we must determine that the pleadings and summary judgment evidence establish that no genuine issue of material fact exists and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. McFadden v. American United Life Ins. Co., 658 S.W.2d 147, 148 (Tex.1983). We accept all evidence favorable to the non-movant as true, indulge the non-movant with every favorable reasonable inference, and resolve any doubt in the non-movant’s favor. Nixon v. Mr. Property Management Co., 690 S.W.2d 546, 549 (Tex.1985). When a defendant moves for summary judgment on several theories and the trial court enters summary judgment without specifying the ground relied upon, we affirm the summary judgment if any one of the theories advanced is meritorious. Martinez v. Corpus Christi Area Teachers Credit Union, 758 S.W.2d 946, 950 (Tex.App.—Corpus Christi 1988, writ denied).

A motion for summary judgment must expressly state the grounds upon which it is made. McConnell v. Southside School Dist., 858 S.W.2d 337, 341 (Tex.1993). A motion for summary judgment must stand or fall on the grounds expressly presented in the motion and a court may not rely on briefs or summary judgment evidence in determining whether grounds are expressly presented. Id. A summary judgment may not be granted on grounds which are not raised by the movant in his motion. Mitre & Canseco v. Brooks Fashion Stores, 840 S.W.2d 612, 616-17 (Tex.App.—Corpus Christi 1992, writ denied); see Teer v. Duddlesten, 664 S.W.2d 702, 704 (Tex.1984). A non-movant does not need to respond to the motion to complain on appeal that the motion was insufficient as a matter of law to support summary judgment. City of Houston v. Clear Creek Basin Auth., 589 S.W.2d 671, 678 (Tex.1979). Otherwise, summary judgments may not be affirmed or reversed on grounds not expressly set forth in the motions presented to the trial court. Id. at 677; Roberts v. Southwest Tex. Methodist Hosp., 811 S.W.2d 141, 144 (Tex.App.—San Antonio 1991, writ denied); Carlisle v. Philip Morris, Inc., 805 S.W.2d 498, 518 (Tex.App.—Austin 1991, writ denied); Dhillon v. General Accident Ins. Co., 789 S.W.2d 293, 295 (Tex.App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1990, no writ). In Carlisle, the Austin Court of Appeals stated:

In construing the effect of the 1978 amendments to Rule 166a, the Texas Supreme Court has expressed a strong concern that, in an appeal from a summary judgment, issues to be reviewed by the appellate court must have been actually presented to and considered by the trial court. (Emphasis in original).

Carlisle, 805 S.W.2d at 518 (citing Clear Creek Basin Auth., 589 S.W.2d at 675-77). Consequently, we address appellant’s points of error only in context of the issues we find were expressly presented to the trial court by appellee’s motion for summary judgment.

The State Bar Rules applicable to this disciplinary proceeding contain their own limitations period. Section 16(J) states as follows:

Four Year Limitation and Exceptions. No member shall be reprimanded, suspended, or disbarred for misconduct occurring more than four (4) years prior to the time such allegation is brought to the attention of counsel except in cases in which disbarment or suspension is compulsory as provided herein. Limitations, however, will not run where fraud or concealment is involved until such misconduct is discovered or should have been discovered by reasonable diligence by counsel.

State Bar Rules, art. X, § 16(J), (repealed by Tex.R.DisciplinaRY P., effective May 1,1992, provided that the section still applies to then pending disciplinary proceedings).

Tinning produced no evidence of the date the allegation was brought to the attention of the State Bar’s counsel. Thus, Tinning did not establish that this proceeding was barred by limitations, and the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on the issue of limitations.

[407]*407Tinning also moved for summary judgment on the ground that he did not split fees with a non-lawyer. Tinning attached four documents, entitled affidavits, to his motion in support of this contention. The State Bar challenges the competency of these documents and argues that they are not affidavits, since they lack jurats. Tinning contends that defects in the documents are of form and not substance, and that the State Bar failed to object at the trial court.

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State Bar of Texas v. Tinning
875 S.W.2d 403 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1994)

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875 S.W.2d 403, 1994 WL 94108, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-bar-of-texas-v-tinning-texapp-1994.