City of Rio Grande City, Texas, and Joel Villarreal, Herman R. Garza III, Arcadio J. Salinas III, Rey Ramirez, and Dave Jones in Their Official Capacities v. BFI Waste Services of Texas, LP D/B/A Allied Waste Services of Rio Grande Valley ( 2015 )

ACCEPTED 04-15-00729-cv FOURTH COURT OF APPEALS SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 12/9/2015 8:28:29 AM KEITH HOTTLE CLERK No. 04-15-00729-CV FILED IN 4th COURT OF APPEALS In the Fourth Court of Appeals SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 12/9/2015 8:28:29 AM San Antonio, Texas KEITH E. HOTTLE Clerk GRANDE GARBAGE COLLECTION CO., CITY OF RIO GRANDE, TEXAS, AND ITS ELECTED OFFICIALS IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES Appellants V. BFI WASTE SERVICES OF TEXAS, LP D/B/A ALLIED WASTE SERVICES OF RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Appellee INTERLOCUTORY APPEAL FROM CAUSE NO. CAUSE NO. DC-15-604 229TH DISTRICT COURT OF STARR COUNTY, TEXAS HON. MIGDALIA LOPEZ PRESIDING BY APPOINTMENT APPELLANTS’ OPPOSED MOTION FOR EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE APPELLANTS’ BRIEF TO THE HONORABLE THIRTEENTH COURT OF APPEALS: Appellants Grande Garbage Collection Co. and City of Rio Grande, Texas and Its Elected Officials in Their Official Capacities1 file this motion for extension of time to file their Appellants’ Brief. In support of this motion, Appellants 1 The Elected Officials of the City of Rio Grande, Texas are Mayor Joel Villarreal, Herman R. Garza III, Arcadio Salinas III, Rey Ramirez, and Dave Jones, and they join in this appeal. respectfully show the following: 1. On November 30, 2015, the reporter’s record was filed, and the briefing schedule commenced. Accordingly, the Appellants’ Brief is due December 21, 2015 (the 20th day falls on a Sunday). 2. Appellants request an additional 30 days to file their Appellants’ Brief, making the brief due January 20, 2016. This is Appellants’ first request for an extension of time to file their brief. 3. Appellants conferred with counsel for Appellee on December 8, 2015, who indicated that Appellee is opposed to the relief requested in this motion. 4. Appellants require an extension because the undersigned counsel requires time to study the record and draft the brief. The undersigned counsel faxed a request to the Honorable Clerk of this Court for a copy of the appellate record on December 4, 2015, but has not yet received a copy of the official appellate record. Additionally, Appellants requested a supplemental clerk’s record, which was filed with the Court on December 7, 2015. The undersigned counsel requires the record to begin the briefing. 5. Additionally, among other deadlines, the undersigned counsel has been and will be occupied with the following: a. Drafting and filing a petition for discretionary review due to be filed in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on December 23, 2 2015 in Cause No. PD-1376-15, Roel Alvarez Lopez v. State of Texas; b. Preparing for a hearing involving nine different summary judgment motions set for December 17, 2015 in MDL Cause No. 15-0360, In re Fraudulent Hospital Lien Litigation, pending in the 430th District Court of Hidalgo County, Texas (pre-trial multidistrict litigation court); and c. Preparing a motion for rehearing and reconsideration en banc due on December 14, 2015 in Cause No. 04-15-00056-CV, Hodge et al. v. Kraft, pending in the Fourth Court of Appeals. 6. Appellants have good cause for their request for an extension of time, which is not sought for purposes of delay but so that their interests can be adequately represented. CONCLUSION AND PRAYER For these reasons, Appellants respectfully requests that the Court grant this motion for extension of time, making their Appellants’ Brief due on January 20, 2016. Appellants request any further relief to which they are justly entitled. 3 Respectfully submitted, /s/ Brandy Wingate Voss Brandy Wingate Voss State Bar No. 24037046 Smith Law Group, P.C 820 E. Hackberry Ave. McAllen, TX 78501 (956) 683-6330 (956) 225-0406 (fax) brandy@appealsplus.com Counsel for Appellants CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE I certify that on December 8, 2015, I conferred with John David Franz, counsel for Appellee, who advised that Appellee opposes the relief requested in this motion. /s/ Brandy Wingate Voss Brandy Wingate Voss 4 CERTFICATE OF SERVICE By my signature above, I certify that a true and correct copy of this document was served on the following counsel by e-service, e-mail, facsimile, or mail on December 9, 2015: John David Franz Law Office of John David Franz 400 N. McColl Rd. Ste. B McAllen, Texas 78501 (956) 686-3578 (fax) jdf@johndavidfranz.com Counsel for Appellee BFI Waste Services of Texas, LP, d/b/a Allied Waste Services of Rio Grande Valley Gilberto Hinojosa Hinojosa Law Firm 622 E. St. Charles Brownsville, Texas 78520 ghinojosa@ghinojosalaw.net (956) 544-1335 (fax) Counsel for Appellee BFI Waste Services of Texas, LP, d/b/a Allied Waste Services of Rio Grande Valley /s/ Brandy Wingate Voss Brandy Wingate Voss 5