Taylor v. Trans-Continental Properties, Ltd.

739 S.W.2d 873, 1987 Tex. App. LEXIS 7063
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 14, 1987
Docket12-84-0133-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 739 S.W.2d 873 (Taylor v. Trans-Continental Properties, Ltd.) 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
Taylor v. Trans-Continental Properties, Ltd., 739 S.W.2d 873, 1987 Tex. App. LEXIS 7063 (Tex. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

OPINION ON RECORD

COLLEY, Justice.

On June 27,1985, we delivered an unpublished opinion in this cause on the merits of an appeal brought by Southwest Mortgage Service Corporation and W.W. (Doc) Taylor, defendants/appellants (Taylor) from a judgment rendered in favor of Trans-Continental Properties, Ltd., Pine Hill Lake & Golf Course, Inc., Pine Hill Inn, Inc., and Pine Hill Lake and Golf Corporation, plaintiffs/appellees (Trans-Continental). We reversed the trial court’s judgment and remanded the cause for a new trial. The Supreme Court, by per curiam opinion delivered on March 26, 1986, 1 granted TransContinental’s application for writ of error, and reversed our judgment, but remanded the cause to us with instructions “to proceed according to [its] opinion.” Transcontinental, 717 S.W.2d at 891. In its opinion the Supreme Court stated, “Although properly raised by motion to dismiss the appeal and uphold the trial court’s judgment, the court of appeals’ opinion did not address whether the [initial] Rule 21c motion [by Taylor] was timely.” The motion referred to by the Supreme Court did, in fact, assert that the record had not been timely filed as to a modified judgment signed on February 23, 1984. It is true that we did not address that motion in our opinion, but the record clearly reveals that on June 28,1984, we overruled that presub-mission motion by which Trans-Continental had urged this court to “enter an order affirming the judgment of the trial court.” However, our action in overruling the motion prior to submission of the case on the merits constituted an interlocutory order. Smith v. Free, 130 Tex. 23,107 S.W.2d 588, 589-590 (1937). In such circumstances, the ruling on the motion must be either assigned as error by cross-point in the appellate brief or incorporated in a motion for rehearing filed in the court of appeals; otherwise the error, if any, is waived. Smith v. Free, 107 S.W.2d at 590; see also Keck v. Roberson, 133 Tex. 466, 130 S.W.2d 287 (1939). Trans-Continental did not bring a cross-point in its brief contending that we erred in overruling the presubmission motion filed by it, nor did it raise the issue in its motion for rehearing filed in this court on July 9, 1985. Trans-Continental’s motion for rehearing simply alleged that this court had no jurisdiction to hear the cause on the merits. Its argument was that the record was not filed within one hundred days of the February 3, 1984, judgment and, therefore, we were without the jurisdiction to extend the time for filing the record because Taylor failed to establish the requisite good cause. Trans-Continental argued that we abused our discretion in extending the time for the filing of the record, because the delay was brought on by Taylor’s own negligence. At no time did Trans-Continental expressly assert in this Court that the initial 21c motion for extension of time to file the record herein was untimely as it related to the February 23, 1984, modified judgment, nor is such contention raised inferentially by other lan *875 guage found in its motion for rehearing in this court. Trans-Continental by its fourth point in its application for writ of error, however, complained for the first time in this case’s appellate history, that if the time for filing the record under former Rule 386 2 began to run from the date of the February 23, 1984, modified judgment, “since Respondent filed no motion for new trial,” respecting the February 23, 1984, judgment, that Taylor’s initial 21c motion to extend the time for filing the record “should have been submitted on or before May 8,1984.” 3 The law question raised by that point was never presented to this court other than by the presubmission motion. Hence under Smith v. Free and Keck v. Roberson, the action of this court overruling the presubmission motion to affirm the lower court’s judgment remained interlocutory and unappealed, and should not have been considered by the Supreme Court. Rules 458(b), 469. 4 Nonetheless, we both recognize and respect the Supreme Court’s prerogative to determine its own jurisdiction in the matter. Therefore, in obedience to its direction, we issued the appropriate notice under former Rule 387(b). 5 . Both parties promptly responded. Briefs were submitted, and the cause on remand was set for submission 6 with oral argument. In accordance with our request, the parties addressed two questions: first, does this court have authority to pass on the timeliness of the filing of Taylor’s initial Rule 21c motion to extend the time for filing the record on appeal, and second, was the motion filed timely.

Taylor argues that we are not foreclosed from now addressing the second question posed above and calls to our attention the fact that there was a pleading filed in this case by Taylor on March 6, 1984, which was the equivalent of a motion for new trial. 7 Thus, Taylor contends that the initial 21c motion was timely filed on the eleventh day following the entry of the February 23, 1984, judgment. On the other hand, Trans-Continental claims that our decisional action on remand in this cause is limited to an affirmance of the trial court’s judgment, or dismissal of Taylor’s appeal.

The parties have furnished us with a copy of the withdrawn per curiam opinion by the Supreme Court in this cause issued on November 20,1985. That opinion closed with the following language:

Although properly raised by motion to dismiss the appeal and uphold the trial court’s judgment, the court of appeals did not address whether the Rule 21c motion was timely. Because the opinion of the court of appeals conflicts with Tex.R.Civ.P. 21c, 329b(h) and 386, we reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and dismiss the appeal.

(Emphasis ours.) The per curiam opinion of the Supreme Court of March 26, 1986, 717 S.W.2d at 891, in part states:

Thus, the court of appeals had no authority to consider the late transcript and statement of facts not permitted under Rule 21c, B.D. Click, [v. Safari Drilling Corp.], 638 S.W.2d at 862, but could only dismiss the appeal or affirm the trial court’s judgment. Tex.R.Civ.P. 386. Tex.R.Civ.P. 387(b) provides that before dismissing an appeal, the court of appeals may give notice to the parties and ask them to submit reasons why the appeal should not be dismissed.
*876 Although properly raised by motion to dismiss the appeal and uphold the trial court’s judgment, the court of appeals’ opinion did not address whether the Rule 21c motion was timely. Because the opinion of the court of appeals conflicts with Tex.R.Civ.P. 21c, 329b(h) and 386, we reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and remand to that court to proceed according to this opinion.

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Bluebook (online)
739 S.W.2d 873, 1987 Tex. App. LEXIS 7063, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-v-trans-continental-properties-ltd-texapp-1987.