Court Opinion

ID: 9901648
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-11-22 07:09:31.62826+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:21:36.223299
License: Public Domain

Dismiss and Opinion Filed November 15, 2023

                                     In the
                           Court of Appeals
                    Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                              No. 05-23-00573-CV

               MAURICIO VALLEJO, JR, Appellant
                             V.
        DESIRHEA HELGE AND DARIUS DORROUGH, Appellees

               On Appeal from the 193rd Judicial District Court
                            Dallas County, Texas
                    Trial Court Cause No. DC-22-13613

                        MEMORANDUM OPINION
                Before Justices Carlyle, Goldstein, and Breedlove
                           Opinion by Justice Carlyle
      We questioned our jurisdiction over this appeal because the trial court’s

judgment appeared to have been signed outside the trial court’s plenary power,

making the judgment void. See State v. ex rel. Latty v. Owens, 907 S.W.2d 484, 486

(Tex. 1995) (per curiam) (“Judicial action taken after a court’s jurisdiction has

expired is a nullity.”). The record in this case shows the underlying cause was

initially dismissed for want of prosecution on November 6, 2022. Appellees filed a

timely motion to reinstate, which the trial court granted on January 12, 2023.
Thereafter, the trial court granted a default judgment on March 9, 2023. This appeal

followed.

      Although a timely filed motion to reinstate extends a trial court’s plenary

power over a case to seventy-five days from the date of judgment, the motion must

be verified. McConnell v. May, 800 S.W.2d 194, 194 (Tex. 1990) (orig. proceeding)

(per curiam). Here, the motion to reinstate was timely, but it was not verified. As a

result, the trial court’s plenary power over the underlying case expired on December

6, 2022, thirty days after the judgment was signed. See id.; TEX. R. CIV. P. 329b(d).

Because the order of reinstatement and the subsequent default judgment were signed

outside the trial court’s plenary power to do so, they are void.

      We informed the parties by letter that when an appeal is taken from a void

judgment, we have jurisdiction only to vacate the judgment and dismiss the appeal.

Both appellant and appellees agree the trial court’s order of reinstatement and

subsequent default judgment are void, although appellees suggest that because

appellant did not seek a writ of mandamus to vacate the reinstatement order,

appellees were entitled to rely upon it to seek the default judgment. We find no merit

in appellee’s assertion. When, as here, an appeal is taken from a void judgment, we

must vacate the void judgment and dismiss the appeal. See Freedom Commc’ns, Inc.

v. Coronado, 372 S.W.3d 621, 623 (Tex. 2012) (“[A]ppellate courts do not have

jurisdiction to address the merits of appeals from void orders or judgments; rather,

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they have jurisdiction only to determine that the order or judgment underlying the

appeal is void and make appropriate orders based on that determination.”).

      Accordingly, on the record before us, we vacate the January 12, 2023 order of

reinstatement and the March 9, 2023 default judgment and dismiss this appeal.

                                          /Cory L. Carlyle/
230573f.p05                               CORY L. CARLYLE
                                          JUSTICE

                                       –3–
                            Court of Appeals
                     Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                                  JUDGMENT

MAURICIO VALLEJO, JR,                          On Appeal from the 193rd Judicial
Appellant                                      District Court, Dallas County, Texas
                                               Trial Court Cause No. DC-22-13613.
No. 05-23-00573-CV           V.                Opinion delivered by Justice Carlyle.
                                               Justices Goldstein and Breedlove
DESIRHEA HELGE AND DARIUS                      participating.
DORROUGH, Appellees

      In accordance with this Court’s opinion of this date, the trial court’s January
12, 2023 order of reinstatement and March 9, 2023 default judgment are
VACATED and the appeal is DISMISSED.

Judgment entered this 15th day of November, 2023.

                                         –4–