Court Opinion

ID: 9680062
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 07:18:27.698389+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:25.157907
License: Public Domain

WARD, Justice
(dissenting).
I respectfully dissent. The majority is reversing this case where neither the error, if any, has been preserved nor has harm been shown to have been done to the Appellant. Under Rule 66, Tex.R.Civ.P., the Appellant failed to satisfy the trial Court that the allowance of the trial amendment would prejudice it in maintaining its defense upon the merits. Because of that failure under the terms of that Rule, the trial Court permitted the amendment, or at least this should be the presumption on this appeal. The record reflects from the judgment that the parties announced ready for trial on December 9, 1974; that the trial amendment was presented and “argued to the Court on Wednesday, December 11, 1974,” after an objection had been made by the Appellant to its filing. The terms of the objection are not shown. There was then no motion made by the Appellant to withdraw its announcement of ready with a request for continuance, nor was there then *812any request to reopen the evidence. The record has not been protected. 2 McDonald, Texas Civil Practice § 8.07 at 334 (rev. ed. 1970).
Complaint is made in the motion for new trial, where it is stated that the Appellant was harmed because if it had been apprised that the Appellee was seeking damages as opposed to rescission, “Defendant would have developed evidence during the trial to negate damages and would have cross examined Plaintiff’s witnesses on the question of damages.” This conclusion without proof shows nothing, particularly in the face of one argument made by Appellant under its point that since no evidence of damages was ever offered by the Appellee, Appellant did not desire to reopen as that would have given Appellee an opportunity to prove its damages. At most, the Appellant contends that it did not desire to offer any further proof but that it might have cross examined Appellee’s witnesses differently. It has not shown in what manner. I fail to see how the filing of the trial amendment under this record has amounted to such a denial of the rights of Appellant as was reasonably calculated to cause, and probably did cause, an improper judgment which requires a reversal and a remand. Rule 434, Tex.R.Civ.P. The burden of showing harm has been misplaced on this point.