C OURT OF A PPEALS FOR THE
F IRST D ISTRICT OF T EXAS AT H OUSTON

M EMORANDUM O RDER

Appellate case name: In re Christian Faith Missionary Baptist Church

Appellate case number: 01

- 14

- 00057

- CV

Trial court case number: 2012

- 73452

Trial court: 127th District Court of Harris County

On January 17, 2014, Relator Christian Faith Missionary Baptist Church filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus and an Unopposed Motion for Emergency Stay. The stay is GRANTED and the proceedings in the trial court, including discover y, are STAYED, pending the outcome

of this mandamus proceeding

.

The Court REQUESTS that the Real Parties in Interest file a response to the mandamus petition. The response, if any, shall be filed within 20 days of the date of this order.

Finally, t he Co urt determines that it is appropriate to refer this dispute for resolution by

mediation. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. §§ 154.021, 154.022(a), 154.023 (West

2013 ). Accordingly, the Court ORDERS the parties to attend mediation within the next 30 days unless any party to the appeal files an objection with the Clerk of this Court within ten days after receiving this order. See id. § 154.022(b).

The parties shall choose a qualified mediator and agree on a reasonable fee for the
mediator’s services. 1 S ee id. §§ 154.052, 154.054(a) ( West 2013 ). When the parties notify the Clerk of this Court of the name of the mediator, that person shall be deemed appointed by the

Court. See id. § 154.051 ( West 2013 ). The parties should provide the mediator with a comple ted “Notification to Mediator” and the “Appointment and Fee Report

— Mediation” form. These documents can be downloaded from the forms page of the Court’s website at http://www.1stcoa.courts.state.tx.us

.

The Court does not recommend mediators. Mediation information is available from the Dispute Resolution Center of Harris County ((713) 755

- 8274 ( htt ps://www.harriscountytx.gov/drc ), and the Alternate Dispute Resolution Section of the State Bar of Texas ( h ttp://www.texasadr.org/ ), and other groups. The parties are not required to use amediator recomm ended or listed by these groups, and the Court encourages the parties to use a

mediator experienced in mediating church disputes.

The Court sets the followin g deadlines:

• No later than 15 days from the date that this order is issued, the parties shall file with the Clerk of this Court a completed “Parties’ Notification to Court of Mediator.” This document can be downloaded from the forms page of the Court’s website at http://www.1stcoa.courts.state.tx.us

. • No later than 30 days from the date that this order is issued, the parties shall conduct the

mediation.

• N o later than two days from the conclusion of the mediation, the parties and the mediator shall advise the Clerk of this Court in writing whether the parties did or did not settle the underlying dispute, and the mediator shall file with the Clerk of this Court a completed “Appointment and Fee Report

— Mediation” form. This document can be downloaded fr om the forms page of the
Court’s website at http://www.1stcoa.courts.state.tx.us

.

All parties, or their representative with full settlement authority, shall attend the mediation with their counsel. The mediator shall encourage and assist the parties in r eaching a settlement of their dispute, but may not compel or coerce the parties to enter into a settlement
agreement. See id. § 154.053(a) ( West 2013 ). All communications relating to the mediation are confidential and not subject to disclosure, except as s et forth by law. See id. § 154.073 (West

2013 ). The Clerk of this Court, however, will file this order, any objection to this order, and the completed “Parties’ Notification to Court of Mediator” and “Appointment and Fee Report

— Mediation” forms with the ot her documents filed in this appeal that are available for public inspection.

Unless expressly authorized by the disclosing party, the mediator may not disclose to either party information given in confidence by the other and shall at all times maintain

c onfidentiality with respect to communications relating to the subject matter of the dispute. See

id. § 154.053(b). Unless the parties agree otherwise, all matters, including the conduct and

deme anor of the parties and their counsel during the settlement pr ocess, are confidential and may never be disclosed to anyone, including this Court. See id. § 154.053(c).

The Court will consider the agreed fee for the mediator’s services to be reasonable and tax that fee as a cost of the appeal unless the parties agre e to another method of payment. See id. § 154.054.

Nothing in this order modifies the timetables in the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure regarding the appellate record and briefs.

It is so ORDERED.

Judge’s signature: /s/ Rebeca Huddle

Ac ting individually

Date: January 22, 2014