in the Matter of the Marriage of James Roy Vaughn IV and Amber Vaughn and in the Interest of J.R.V v. S.M.E v. and C.A v. Children ( 2021 )

IN THE
TENTH COURT OF APPEALS
No. 10-21-00256-CV
IN THE MATTER OF THE MARRIAGE OF
JAMES ROY VAUGHN IV AND AMBER VAUGHN
AND IN THE INTEREST OF
J.R.V.V., S.M.E.V., AND C.A.V., CHILDREN
From the 369th District Court
Leon County, Texas
Trial Court No. CV20-0222
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Appellant James Roy Vaughn IV, acting pro se, attempts to appeal from a
“Temporary Ex Parte Protective Order and Order Setting Hearing,” signed by the trial
court on August 27, 2021. 1 This Court, however, has no jurisdiction to hear an appeal
from a judgment that is not final, unless there is specific statutory authority permitting
an appeal before final judgment. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 51.012. It
appears that none of the exceptions to the rule that only final judgments can be appealed
1 The temporary ex parte order has been extended.
applies in this case. See id. § 51.014 (listing interlocutory orders that may be appealed
before final judgment is rendered in the case); TEX. FAM. CODE ANN. § 81.009.
On October 12, 2021, we issued an order notifying the parties that the Court may
dismiss this appeal unless, within ten days of the date of the order, a response was filed
showing grounds for continuing the appeal. No response showing grounds for
continuing the appeal has been filed. Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed for want of
jurisdiction. See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3(a).
Absent a specific exemption, the Clerk of the Court must collect filing fees at the
time a document is presented for filing. Id. R. 12.1(b); see id. R. 5. But Appellant filed a
Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs in this appeal on October 5, 2021.
We conclude that Appellant is not required to pay costs in this appeal. See id. R. 20.1(a)
(defining “costs” as “filing fees charged by the appellate court”).
MATT JOHNSON
Justice
Before Chief Justice Gray,
Justice Johnson, and
Justice Smith
Dismissed
Opinion delivered and filed October 27, 2021
[CV06]
In re Marriage of Vaughn Page 2