Court Opinion

ID: 9665803
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 00:57:25.731299+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:15:19.094919
License: Public Domain

OPINION ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
Appellee, on motion for rehearing, asserts that this Court had no jurisdiction over appellants, Roger Blanchard, Hugh Patrick ' Blanchard, Marie Ainsworth Marks and Doris Ainsworth Stephenson, inasmuch as they never filed an appeal bond in this cause nor did they authorize anyone else to do so on their behalf. Ap-pellee contends that this Court had no jurisdiction to reverse and remand the cause as to these named appellants. We agree with the appellee on this point.
In order to better understand the complex circumstances surrounding the filing of the appeal bond, we will review the various motions and orders of this Court as they occurred. On October 24, 1973, the transcript was duly filed in this Court. Included in said transcript was an appeal bond. The appeal bond was executed on September 25, 1973, and timely filed with the trial court on September 27, 1973. This appeal bond was signed by Tom Kain purportedly for all of the appellants. Ap-pellee, on November 1, 1973, filed a motion to dismiss appeal for lack of jurisdiction asserting that nineteen (19) of the appellants had not personally signed the appeal bond, thus making it defective. In response, the appellants filed their motion for leave to file a new appeal bond.
On November 5, 1973, this Court overruled appellee’s motion to dismiss the appeal and granted appellants’ motion for leave to amend their appeal bond giving them thirty (30) days in which to file a proper bond. On November 7, 1973, an amended appeal bond was filed, but the following six (6) parties had not signed it: Lawrence Drew Kain, Barbara Rehak, Roger Blanchard, Marie Ainsworth Marks, Doris Ainsworth Stephenson, Hugh Patrick Blanchard. Thereafter, on January 7, 1974, appellee filed a motion to dismiss appeal for lack of jurisdiction as to these appellants, who had not signed the amended bond. In response, those non-executing appellants filed their additional motion for leave to execute an amended appeal bond contending among other things that the parties were scattered throughout the United States and that it was difficult to get all of their personal signatures. Appellee again objected to appellants’ motion. Ap-pellee’s motion was overruled by written order giving appellants, Roger Blanchard, Doris Ainsworth Stephenson, Barbara Re-hak and Lawrence Drew Kain, ten (10) days in which to execute and file a supplemental bond and appellants, Marie Ains-worth Marks and Hugh Patrick Blanchard, *52twenty-one (21) days to file a supplemental bond. The order stated that as to each appellant who fails to comply with the aforesaid order within the time specified, the appeal as to each of said appellants was thereby dismissed.
On February 4, 1974, two of the appellants, Lawrence Drew Kain and Barbara Rehak, filed their supplemental appeal bond. Appellants, Roger Blanchard, Marie Ainsworth Marks, Doris Ainsworth Stephenson and Hugh Patrick Blanchard, have never filed a supplemental amended appeal bond. The appeal as to each of the appellants, namely: Roger Blanchard, Marie Ainsworth Marks, Doris Ainsworth Stephenson and Hugh Patrick Blanchard, was dismissed and the same is hereby so ordered. See Owen v. Brown, 447 S.W.2d 883 (Tex.Sup.1969). Therefore, judgment of the trial court as to all other appellants is reversed and the cause is remanded for a trial on the merits as to the sixteen appellants who had properly perfected their appeal. The motion for rehearing is, in all other respects, overruled.
Motion for rehearing is granted in part and overruled in part.