Diane Gloria Silva v. U. S. Bank National Association as Trustee for CitiGroup Mortgage Loan Trust Inc. 2016-NCI Asset-Backed Pass Through Certificate Series

NUMBER 13-16-00703-CV
COURT OF APPEALS
THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG
____________________________________________________________
DIANE GLORIA SILVA, Appellant,
v.
U. S. BANK NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION AS TRUSTEE FOR
CITIGROUP MORTGAGE LOAN
TRUST INC. 2016-NCI ASSET-BACKED
PASS THROUGH CERTIFICATE SERIES, Appellee.
____________________________________________________________
On appeal from County Court at Law No. 5
of Hidalgo County, Texas.
____________________________________________________________
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before Justices Rodriguez, Longoria, and Hinojosa
Memorandum Opinion by Justice Hinojosa
The appellant's brief in the above cause was originally due on April 19, 2017. On
October 20, 2017, the Court granted appellant’s sixth request for an extension of time to
file the brief and ordered appellant to file the brief on or before November 13, 2017.
Appellant was advised that no further extensions would be granted.
On November 14, 2017, appellant filed a motion for leave to file the brief and a
brief that was not in compliance with the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. The brief
failed generally to comply with the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See TEX. R.
APP. P. 38.1. Appellant was instructed to file an amended brief.
On December 4, 2017, the Court received an amended brief. The Clerk of the
Court notified appellant that the amended brief failed to comply with Rule 38.1 (b), (c),
(d), (g), (i), and (k) of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See generally TEX. R.
APP. P. 38.1. The brief does not contain a table of contents with references to the pages
of the brief as required by Rule 38.1(b); does not contain an index of authorities arranged
alphabetically and indicating the pages of the brief where the authorities are cited as
required by Rule 38.1(c); the statement of the case is not supported by record references
as required by Rule 38.1(d); the statement of facts is not supported by record references
as required by Rule 38.1(g); does not contain a clear and concise argument for the
contentions made, with appropriate citations to the authorities and to the record; and does
not contain an appendix as required by Rule 38.1(k).
Appellant was directed to file an amended brief in compliance with the Texas Rules
of Appellate Procedure within ten days of the date of the letter, and notified that if the
Court received another brief that did not comply, the Court may strike the brief, prohibit
appellant from filing another, and proceed as if appellant had failed to file a brief, under
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which circumstances the Court may affirm the judgment or dismiss the appeal. See id.
38.9(a), 42.3(b),(c).
Pro se litigants are held to the same standards as licensed attorneys, and they
must therefore comply with all applicable rules of procedure. Mansfield State Bank v.
Cohn, 573 S.W.2d 181, 184-85 (Tex. 1978). If a party files a brief that does not comply
with the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, and that party files an amended brief that
likewise does not comply with the rules, “the court may strike the brief, prohibit the party
from filing another, and proceed as if the party had failed to file a brief.” TEX. R. APP. P.
38.9(a). Pursuant to Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 38.8(a), where an appellant has
failed to file a brief, the appellate court may dismiss the appeal for want of prosecution.
Accordingly, we strike appellant’s non-conforming brief and order the appeal
DISMISSED FOR WANT OF PROSECUTION. See TEX. R. APP. P. 38.8(a), 38.9(a),
42.3(b)(c). Any pending motions are dismissed as moot.
LETICIA HINOJOSA
Justice
Delivered and filed the
18th day of January, 2018.
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