Court Opinion

ID: 9636040
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 14:13:59.202689+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:09:40.921950
License: Public Domain

On Motion for Rehearing.
In their motion for rehearing, the appellants complain, in language which at best can be described as unrestrained, that we are in error in holding that they did not, by their petition, invoke the jurisdiction of the district court. They argue that the trial court did have jurisdiction of this suit, because “if he did not have jurisdiction, he could not act on it.” We held that the trial court had jurisdiction to pass upon the pleading of the appellees; that the pleading did not allege facts showing the school consolidation election was void; and that the trial court could and did properly declare its lack of jurisdiction.
If the trial court dismissed appellants’ suit for an incorrect reason, “that it was just an election contest, without joinder of the County Attorney,” as was urged in the plea in abatement of appellees, but the suit should have been dismissed properly for the reason that the petition stated no cause of action, the result in the trial court and in this court on appeal would have been the same. It would be a useless act here now for this court to reverse the trial court’s judgment dismissing appellants’ suit by sustaining the plea in abatement, remand the cause for a new trial, and hold on the next appeal that appellants did not allege a cause of action and therefore dismiss their suit. See Kelly v. Wright, Tex., 188 S.W.2d 983, at page 986; Rule 434, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
Under the allegations of this petition, appellants did not allege a cause of action, for the reasons we set out in the original opinion. If we are incorrect in such holding, appellants have their remedy by writ of error to the Supreme Court in this cause.
The motion for rehearing is overruled.