NUMBER 13-22-00233-CV 

COURT OF APPEALS 

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS 

CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG 

 

JULIE SMITH SHODROK, Appellant, 

 v.

THE LEE FIRM, P.C. D/B/A 

LEE & LESINSKI AND 

SAMANTHA FALCONER Appellees.

On appeal from the 28th District Court

of Nueces County, Texas.

ORDER OF ABATEMENT AND 

REFERRING CASE TO MEDIATION 

Before Chief Justice Contreras and Justices Longoria and Tijerina

Order Per Curiam

This cause is before the Court on its own motion. Upon review of the docketing 

statements in this matter, the Court has determined the case should be referred to 

mediation. Accordingly, it is ordered that this appeal be abated, and the case be mediated 

under the following terms and conditions: 
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1. The parties must promptly agree upon a mediator and, within 

fourteen days of this Order, notify the Court in writing of the name 

and address of the mediator selected. If the parties are unable to 

agree upon a mediator, they must so notify the Court within the 

fourteen-day period.

2. All parties must confer with their mediator within fourteen days of the 

date of this Order to establish a date and place for the mediation. 

The parties shall agree on a date for the mediation that is consistent 

with the mediator’s schedule and is no later than thirty days after the 

date of this Order. In the event the parties cannot agree on a date, 

the mediator shall select and set a date. The mediator shall notify the 

Court of the date selected for the mediation.

3. In the discretion of the mediator, each party may be required to 

provide a confidential memorandum and/or information sheet setting 

forth the issues of the case and their positions on these issues. 

Additionally, upon request of the mediator, the parties shall produce 

all information the mediator deems necessary to understand the 

issues of the case. The memorandum and/or information sheet and 

other information produced to the mediator will not be made a part of 

the file in this case and will be destroyed by the mediator at the 

conclusion of the mediation proceeding.

4. All parties to this matter or their authorized representatives, 

accompanied by their counsel, must appear and attend the 

mediation proceeding. In accordance with the Supreme Court of 

Texas’s Emergency Orders Regarding the Covid-19 State of 

Disaster, the parties may elect to attend the mediation remotely by 

teleconference or videoconference. The mediation shall be for a full 

day. 

5. Mediation is a mandatory, non-binding settlement conference 

conducted with the assistance of a mediator. The mediation 

proceeding will be confidential within the meaning of the Texas Civil 

Practice and Remedies Code sections 154.053 and 154.073. 

6. Unless otherwise agreed, the mediation proceeding will not be 

recorded.

7. The mediator will negotiate a reasonable fee with the parties. The 

mediator’s fee will be borne equally by the parties unless otherwise 

agreed by the parties and will be paid directly to the mediator. 

8. Within two days after the conclusion of the mediation, the mediator 

shall certify to this Court as follows: (a) whether the parties appeared 

as ordered; (b) whether the case settled; and (c) whether the 

mediation fees were paid as agreed by the parties.
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9. If mediation fully resolves the issues in this case, the parties must file 

a joint or agreed motion seeking dispositive relief within fourteen 

days of the conclusion of the mediation. If the parties need more time 

to effectuate the terms of the settlement agreement, they must, within 

fourteen days of the conclusion of mediation, file a joint or agreed 

motion for an extension of time to file their disposition motion. 

It is further ordered that this case is abated pending this Court’s review of the 

mediator’s report and further order of this Court.

PER CURIAM

Delivered and filed on the 

13th day of July, 2022.