Jayson Howard Moore v. Dallas Morning News Inc, Kevin R. Krause ( 2023 )

Order entered January 19, 2023
In The
Court of Appeals
Fifth District of Texas at Dallas
No. 05-22-01286-CV
JAYSON HOWARD MOORE, Appellant
V.
DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC., ET AL., Appellees
On Appeal from the 44th Judicial District Court
Dallas County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. DC-21-06923
ORDER
Appellant appeals from the trial court’s September 28, 2022 judgment. On
November 29, 2022, appellant filed with the trial court a motion to determine the
date he obtained actual knowledge of the judgment. The motion was in essence a
motion to obtain more time filed pursuant to rule 306a(4), (5) of the Texas Rules of
Civil Procedure and was titled “Plaintiff’s Request for Finding Actual Knowledge
of Judgment Under Rule 4.2(c) of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure.” See
TEX. R. CIV. P. 306a(4), (5). Rule 4.2(c) requires a trial court, following a hearing,
to sign a written order that finds the date when the party or the party’s attorney first
either received notice or acquired actual knowledge that the judgment was signed.
See TEX. R. APP. P. 4.2(c). The record before this Court does not reflect the trial
court has determined the motion.
Without the requisite date finding by the trial court, we are unable to
determine the timeliness of the appeal. Accordingly, we ORDER the trial court to
conduct a hearing, WITHIN TWENTY DAYS of the date of this order, on
appellant’s November 29, 2022 motion and sign an order finding the date when
appellant, who is pro se, first either received notice or acquired actual knowledge
that the judgment was signed. See id.
We ORDER Dallas County District Clerk Felicia Pitre to file, WITHIN
TWENTY-FIVE DAYS of the date of this order, a supplemental clerk’s record
with the trial court’s order. We ORDER Crystal Brown, Official Court Reporter
for the 44th Judicial District Court, to file, WITHIN THIRTY DAYS of the date
of this order, the reporter’s record of the ordered hearing.
We DIRECT the Clerk of this Court to send a copy of this order to the
Honorable Veretta Frazier, Presiding Judge of the 44th Judicial District Court; Ms.
Pitre; Ms. Brown; and, all parties.
We ABATE the appeal to allow the trial court an opportunity to comply
with this order. The appeal will be reinstated in thirty days or when the requested
supplemental clerk’s record is filed, whichever occurs sooner.
/s/ ROBERT D. BURNS, III
CHIEF JUSTICE