Court Opinion

ID: 9780892
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-30 06:08:13.252565+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:34:16.527157
License: Public Domain

DISMISS and Opinion Filed August 25, 2023

                                   S  In The
                            Court of Appeals
                     Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                               No. 05-23-00340-CV

                 DOUGLAS EMERY ADAMS, Appellant
                              V.
              CATAMOUNT PROPERTIES 2018, LLC, Appellee

                On Appeal from the County Court at Law No. 3
                            Collin County, Texas
                    Trial Court Cause No. 003-00817-2023

                        MEMORANDUM OPINION
                Before Justices Pedersen, III, Garcia, and Kennedy
                            Opinion by Justice Garcia
      This is an appeal from an order in a forcible detainer lawsuit awarding

possession of the subject property to appellee. Before the Court is appellee’s

motion to dismiss the appeal as moot. Appellee recites in the motion that a writ of

possession was served, and appellant is no longer in possession of the property.

      The only issue in a forcible detainer suit is the right to immediate possession

of the premises. See Olley v. HVM, L.L.C., 449 S.W.3d 572, 575 (Tex. App.—

Houston [14th Dist.] 2014, pet. denied). Unless an appellant has a potentially

meritorious claim of right to current, actual possession, the issue of possession and
the case become moot when the appellant is no longer in possession of the

premises. See Marshall v. Hous. Auth. of City of San Antonio, 198 S.W.3d 782,

787, 790 (Tex. 2006). When a case becomes moot on appeal, an appellate court

must vacate the trial court's judgment and dismiss the case. See City of Dallas v.

Woodfield, 305 S.W.3d 412, 416 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2010, no pet.).

      More than ten days have passed since appellee filed its motion to dismiss

and appellant has not filed a response. Because nothing in the record before us

shows appellant has a potentially meritorious claim of right to current, actual

possession of the property, we grant appellee’s motion, vacate the trial court’s

April 6, 2023 judgment, and dismiss the case.      See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3(a);

Marshall, 198 S.W.3d at 790.

                                             /Dennise Garcia/
                                             DENNISE GARCIA
                                             JUSTICE

230340F.P05

                                       –2–
                                   S
                           Court of Appeals
                    Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                                JUDGMENT

DOUGLAS EMERY ADAMS,                       On Appeal from the County Court at
Appellant                                  Law No. 3, Collin County, Texas
                                           Trial Court Cause No. 003-00817-
No. 05-23-00340-CV        V.               2023.
                                           Opinion delivered by Justice Garcia.
CATAMOUNT PROPERTIES 2018,                 Justices Pedersen, III and Kennedy
LLC, Appellee                              participating.

      In accordance with this Court’s opinion of this date, we VACATE the trial
court’s April 6, 2023 judgment and DISMISS the case.

      We ORDER that appellee CATAMOUNT PROPERTIES 2018, LLC
recover its costs of this appeal from appellant DOUGLAS EMERY ADAMS.

Judgment entered August 25, 2023

                                     –3–