Court Opinion

ID: 4708272
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2021-08-02 07:20:56.918406+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:02:20.091989
License: Public Domain

Order filed July 29, 2021

                                        In The

                        Fourteenth Court of Appeals
                                     ____________

                                NO. 14-20-00851-CV
                                     ____________

                                 IN RE S.D, Relator

                          ORIGINAL PROCEEDING
                           WRIT OF MANDAMUS
                     On Appeal from the 310th District Court
                             Harris County, Texas
                       Trial Court Cause No. 2012-69240

                                       ORDER

      On December 22, 2020, Mother filed a petition for writ of mandamus in this
court. See Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 22.221; see also Tex. R. App. P. 52. In the
petition, Mother asks this court to compel the Honorable Sonya Heath, presiding
judge of the 310th District Court of Harris County, to vacate her November 23, 2020
temporary orders.

      Relator’s petition and mandamus record does not comply with the Texas
Rules of Appellate Procedure. See Tex. R. App. P. 52.3(k)(1), 52.7(a)(1). To be a
“certified or sworn copy,” in accordance with Rule 52, the document must be
certified by the trial court clerk or attached to either a properly prepared affidavit or
an unsworn declaration pursuant to section 132.001 of the Civil Practices and
Remedies Code. See Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 132.001.1

       By this order, the court gives relator ten days’ notice to supplement the first
amended petition and mandamus record to comply with Rules 52.3(k)(1) and
52.7(a)(1). See generally Tex. R. App. P. 42.3(c) (notice of involuntary dismissal).

                                                 PER CURIAM

Panel consists of Justices Bourliot, Zimmerer, and Spain.

1
 The legislature has provided an alternate method of meeting the requirement of sworn copies—
an unsworn declaration. See Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 132.001. An unsworn declaration
must be in writing and subscribed by the person making the declaration as true under penalty of
perjury. Id. § 132.001(c). Section 132.001(d) sets forth the jurat relator may use in an unsworn
declaration:
       My name is, _______________________________________________________________________________________
                                    (First)             (Middle)                   (Last)
       my date of birth is _______________________, and my address is
       __________________________________________________________________________________________________
                              (Street)                 (City)         (State)           (Zip Code)
       and ___________________________________________ I declare under penalty of
                                   (Country)
       Perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
       Executed in _____________ County, State of _____________________________________________________________
       on the ______ day of _________________________________,_______________________________________________
                                                    (Month)                               (Year)
                                                                              ___________________________________
                                                                                             (Declarant)
Id. 132.001(d).