Oralia Flores v. Harold Randecker, M.D. ( 2004 )

      NUMBER 13-02-525-CV

COURT OF APPEALS

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS

CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG

ORALIA FLORES, ET AL.,                                                         Appellants,

v.

HAROLD RANDECKER, M.D., ET AL.,                                       Appellees.

On appeal from the 197th District Court

of Cameron County, Texas.

  M E M O R A N D U M O P I N I O N

     Before Chief Justice Valdez and Justices Rodriguez and Castillo

                                       Opinion Per Curiam

         This appeal arises from a malpractice case against Dr. Harold Randecker and Tenet Healthcare Ltd., d/b/a Brownsville Medical Center, filed in the 197th Judicial District Court of Cameron County. The Honorable Robert Barnes, assigned to preside as visiting judge for the Honorable Migdalia Lopez, dismissed the case. Appellants, Oralia Flores, Individually and as Representative of the Estate of Delfino Flores, and Yolanda Flores, Individually and as Representative of the Estate of Adela Bermudes, filed the instant appeal.

         Subsequently, however, the Honorable Benjamin Euresti granted appellants’ motion to set aside the order of dismissal. Tenet Healthcare Ltd. filed a petition for writ of mandamus complaining that Judge Euresti’s order was void. This Court denied the petition for writ of mandamus on grounds that the assignment order did not preclude Judge Lopez or Judge Euresti from ruling on the motion to vacate the dismissal order and the motion for severance. See In re Tenet Healthcare, Ltd., d/b/a Brownsville Medical Ctr., 104 S.W.3d 692 (Tex. App.–Corpus Christi 2003, orig. proceeding).

         Appellants have moved to dismiss this appeal for lack of jurisdiction. Generally, appeals are allowed only from final orders or judgments. Lehmann v. Har-Con Corp., 39 S.W.3d 191, 195 (Tex. 2001). In the instant case, because there is a valid order in the trial court setting aside the order of dismissal, there is no final appealable judgment. Accordingly, we grant appellant’s motion and dismiss this appeal for want of jurisdiction. See id.  

                                                                        Per Curiam

Opinion delivered and filed this

the 4th day of March, 2004.