Court Opinion

ID: 9760827
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 01:18:32.635021+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:29:17.828513
License: Public Domain

MOTION FOR REHEARING
Relying on Tex.R.App.P. 83 and the supreme court’s opinion in Inpetco, Inc. v. Texas American Bank/Houston, 729 S.W.2d 300, 300 (Tex.1987), Happy Harbor complains that we did not give it an opportunity to rebrief before we held that its first four points of error were waived due to briefing deficiencies.
Proper resolution of this contention requires us to recount the procedural history of this case. Happy Harbor’s brief was originally due on November 18, 1994. On that date, Happy Harbor filed a motion to extend time to file the brief. That motion requested an extension until December 2, 1994, which this Court granted. Happy Harbor did not file a brief or motion to extend by that date. On December 7, 1994, the appellee filed a motion to dismiss for want of prosecution. Happy Harbor did not respond to this motion. On December 28, 1994, the appellee filed a supplemental motion to dismiss for want of prosecution. Happy Harbor did not respond to that motion either.
On January 2, 1995, this Court notified Happy Harbor that the case would be dismissed unless Happy Harbor filed a response within ten days. On January 5, this Court denied the appellee’s original motion to dismiss for want of prosecution without considering the supplemental motion to dismiss. Because our January 5 order denying the appellee’s motion to dismiss issued after the January 2 letter, on January 26 we gave Happy Harbor yet another ten days to file a response showing grounds for continuing the appeal. Happy Harbor then filed a second motion to extend time to file the brief. That motion requested an extension until January *88727, 1995, which this Court granted. However, Happy Harbor did not file its brief until February 7, 1995.
We issued our original opinion in this case on June 15, 1995. Happy Harbor’s motion for rehearing was therefore due on June 30, 1995. On July 3,1995, Happy Harbor filed a motion for rehearing and a motion for leave to file an amended brief.
Happy Harbor’s motion for rehearing sets out the standard of review for factual sufficiency, citing 11 recent opinions of this Court. Startlingly, however, the motion for rehearing does not refer to the record or make any attempt to explain why the jury’s award of actual damages was either unsupported by the evidence or against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence.
Happy Harbor’s reliance on Inpetco is misplaced. As the supreme court clarified in Fredonia State Bank v. American Life Ins., 881 S.W.2d 279, 284 (Tex.1994), “an appellate court has some discretion to choose between deeming a point waived and allowing amendment or rebriefing.” We see no reason to allow Happy Harbor to continue to file deficient pleadings. Accordingly, we overrule Happy Harbor’s motion for rehearing.
We deny the motion for leave to file an amended brief. We deny appellee’s motion for Tex.R.App.P. 84 damages.
We affirm the judgment of the trial court.