Court Opinion

ID: 9680775
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 07:38:22.127176+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:30.401283
License: Public Domain

DANIEL, Justice,
dissenting.
I dissent only from that portion of the Court’s opinion holding that Rule 245, which specifically requires a trial setting notice of not less than ten days, is satisfied by notice of a mere written request for a setting directed to the district clerk in accordance with local rules adopted by the Tarrant County District Courts pursuant to Rule 817.1
The Court accurately states that “ten days’ notice of a trial setting is now required by Rule 245 where the case is set on the motion of one party or on the court’s own motion.” (Emphasis supplied.) Then, without recognizing any difference between an actual trial setting made by the court in accordance with Rule 245, and a motion filed with the district clerk requesting a trial setting under Tarrant County local rules, the majority holds that notice of the latter was sufficient compliance with the positive notice of setting requirement of Rule 245; and this, even though no notice was given to the defendant as to whether or not the setting was granted for the week requested. I particularly disagree with the following portion of the majority opinion:
“We also regard the letter requesting a trial setting, a copy of which was sent to Cohn, as sufficient notice of the trial setting. The letter asked the district clerk to set the cause on the non-jury docket for the week of December 27. It is reasonable to assume that if a trial setting is requested from the district clerk, a litigant is put on notice that trial may be on that requested date. . . . ” (Emphasis supplied.)
Rule 245 was intended to leave no room for assumptions or “may be so” speculation as to the time for which the trial of a contested case is actually set by the court.2 It speaks not of notice of requests for future settings which may or may not be *186made, but only of “reasonable notice of not less than 10 days to the parties” of actual settings theretofore made by the court. There is a distinct difference between a trial setting and a request for a setting. This is the main difference between Rule 245 and the request provisions of the Tar-rant County local rule. While Rule 245 applies to notice of actual settings already made, Section (b) of the Tarrant County local rules applies to requested settings to be made in the future for jury or non-jury weeks. This local rule of the Tarrant County District Courts was effective March 1, 1970,3 more than six years prior to the effective date of the present wording of Rule 245. A full reading of the local rule indicates that its purpose is to assist the courts and the parties in getting pending cases docketed for future jury or non-jury weeks. Nowhere in the local rules does it appear that the requirement for notice of “a written request for setting” was intended to serve as a notice that the court had actually set the case for a particular date or week. This seems to be clear from the following provision of Section (c) of the Tarrant County Rules:
“. . . Nothing herein ordered shall preclude continuation of the present practice of setting contested non-jury cases for trial by giving the required ten (10) days written notice to the opposing party of the week of such setting. Non-jury cases may be set each month for both jury and non-jury weeks by giving such notice to the opposing party or his attorney of record and furnishing a copy of such notice to the clerk of the court. »4
It is undisputed that the defendant had no notice that his case had been actually set for trial, as distinguished from the notice of a letter requesting that a setting be made for a certain week. Therefore, under the plain wording of Rule 245, his motion for new trial was timely filed.5
The effect of the majority opinion is to read Rule 245 as though it required “either notice of ten days of a trial setting or of a written request for a setting filed with the district clerk under local rules.” As long as this interpretation prevails, it is suggested that the rule be rewritten accordingly so that no one who receives a copy of a written request for a setting under local rules will mistakenly rely on the present wording of Rule 245 as requiring that he receive any further notice of a day or week when his case has been actually set down by the court for trial.
STEAKLEY, J., joins in this dissent.

. All citations to Rules are to the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure unless otherwise noted. Rule 817 authorizes district courts to adopt local rules which are “not inconsistent” with the Rules promulgated by the Supreme Court.

. As noted by the majority, the present wording of Rule 245, effective January 1, 1976, was the result of dissatisfaction with the outcome of Plains Growers, Inc. v. Jordan, 519 S.W.2d 633 (1974), in which it was held that no rule promulgated by this Court required notice of a *186trial setting made on the motion of a party at the regular call of the docket. The repeal of Rule 330(b) and amendment of Rule 245 were specifically designed to require such notice, and to provide for later filing of motions for new trial by “a party who had no notice of setting of a contested case for trial” as required by the amended Rule 245. (Emphasis supplied.)

.Local Rules of District Courts of Texas, Texas Civil Judicial Council (1974), page 277. From this compilation of local rules, it appears that practically all of the larger counties had a similar rule prior to April 15, 1974.

. Id., 278-279.

. The applicable portion of Rule 245 reads: “With respect to a party who had no notice of setting of a contested case for trial, the provisions of Rule 329b governing motions for new trial and finality of judgments shall operate from the time of the receipt of notice of rendition of the judgment . . .”