in the Interest of C. A., a Child ( 2004 )

Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed March 25, 2004

Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed March 25, 2004.

In The

Fourteenth Court of Appeals

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NO. 14-04-00011-CV

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IN THE INTEREST OF C.A., A CHILD

On Appeal from the 344th District Court

Chambers County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No.  20031

M E M O R A N D U M   O P I N I O N

This is an appeal from an order of termination signed October 10, 2003.  A motion for new trial and request for findings of fact and conclusions of law were filed on October 24, 2003.  The notice of appeal was filed on December 24, 2003.

On January 26, 2004, the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services filed a motion to dismiss, claiming the notice of appeal was not timely filed and that this court had no jurisdiction.  Appellant did not file a response to this motion.

Under Tex. Fam. Code Ann. ' 263.405(a)-(b) (Vernon 2002), an appeal from an order of termination is an accelerated appeal and the notice of appeal must be filed within 15 days of the date of the order.  A motion for new trial or request for findings of fact and conclusions of law, which were filed in this case, do not extend the deadline for filing the notice of appeal. Id. at '263.405(c).  A motion for extension of time is necessarily implied when an appellant, acting in good faith, files a notice of appeal beyond the time allowed by rule 26.1, but within the fifteen-day grace period provided by Rule 26.3 for filing a motion for extension of time.  See Verburgt v. Dorner, 959 S.W.2d 615, 617-18 9 (1997) (construing the predecessor to Rule 26).  However, the appellant must offer a reasonable explanation for failing to file the notice of appeal in a timely manner.  See Tex. R. App. P. 26.3, 10.5(b)(1)(C); Verburgt, 959 S.W.2d at 617-18.  Appellant=s notice of appeal was not filed within the fifteen-day period provided by rule 26.3.

Because the notice of appeal was not timely filed, we grant the motion to dismiss.  The appeal is ordered dismissed.

PER CURIAM

Judgment rendered and Memorandum Opinion filed March 25, 2004.

Panel consists of Justices Fowler, Edelman, and Seymore.