Court Opinion

ID: 9909357
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-12-13 07:09:03.313956+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:49:10.500400
License: Public Domain

DISMISS and Opinion Filed December 7, 2023

                                      In The
                            Court of Appeals
                     Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                               No. 05-23-00939-CV

                   VECENTE MORALES, Appellant
                              V.
            GEICO INSURANCE COMPANY, ET AL., Appellees

                On Appeal from the 68th Judicial District Court
                            Dallas County, Texas
                     Trial Court Cause No. DC-21-17252

                        MEMORANDUM OPINION
                   Before Justices Nowell, Miskel, and Kennedy
                            Opinion by Justice Miskel
      We questioned our jurisdiction over this appeal because it appeared the notice

of appeal was untimely. See Mitschke v. Borromeo, 645 S.W.3d 251, 260 (Tex.

2022) (“[T]he absence of a timely notice of appeal prevents the appellate court from

ever exercising jurisdiction in the first place.”). A notice of appeal must be filed

within thirty days of the judgment being signed, with limited exceptions not

applicable here. See TEX. R. APP. P. 26.1. In the present case, the date of the final

judgement was October 7, 2022, making the deadline to file the notice of appeal
November 7, 2022. See TEX. R. APP. P. 4.1, 26.1. The notice of appeal was not filed

until September 11, 2023.

      We requested appellant file a letter brief addressing our jurisdictional concern.

In his response, appellant argues that he is entitled to an appeal and that we have

jurisdiction because he never received notice of the judgment. No authority exists,

however, allowing us to alter the time for perfecting an appeal in a civil case. See id.

2. Accordingly, we dismiss this appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3(a).

                                            /Emily Miskel/
230939f.p05                                 EMILY MISKEL
                                            JUSTICE

                                          –2–
                           Court of Appeals
                    Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
                                JUDGMENT

VECENTE MORALES, Appellant                  On Appeal from the 68th Judicial
                                            District Court, Dallas County, Texas
No. 05-23-00939-CV         V.               Trial Court Cause No. DC-21-17252.
                                            Opinion delivered by Justice Miskel.
GEICO INSURANCE COMPANY,                    Justices Nowell and Kennedy
ET AL., Appellees                           participating.

    In accordance with this Court’s opinion of this date, the appeal is
DISMISSED.

Judgment entered this 7th day of December, 2023.

                                      –3–