Rodolfo Urrutia and Claudia Urrutia v. the City of Waco, Texas and Waco ISD

Court of Appeals
Tenth Appellate District of Texas

10-25-00276-CV

Rodolfo Urrutia and Claudia Urrutia,
Appellants

v.

The City of Waco, Texas and Waco ISD,
Appellees

On appeal from the
474th District Court of McLennan County, Texas
Judge E. Alan Bennett, presiding
Trial Court Cause No. 2025-275-6

JUSTICE SMITH delivered the opinion of the Court.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Appellants, Rodolfo Urrutia and Claudia Urrutia, appealed “from any

final judgment rendered in this case.” The “judgment” in question is a notice

of nonsuit filed by the City of Waco, Texas and Waco Independent School

District. No final judgment has been signed in this proceeding.

By letter dated August 20, 2025, the Clerk of this Court informed the

appellants that there appears to be no final, appealable judgment in this
proceeding and questioned the Court’s jurisdiction over the appeal. Appellants

were ordered to respond to the Clerk’s letter, and they filed a response with

the trial court clerk that this Court has received in a clerk’s record.

“Appellate timetables do not run from the date a nonsuit is filed, but

rather from the date the trial court signs an order of dismissal.” In re Bennett,

960 S.W.2d 35, 38 (Tex. 1997) (citing Farmer v. Ben E. Keith Co., 907 S.W.2d

495, 496 (Tex. 1995) ("The appellate timetable does not commence to run other

than by a signed, written order, even when the signing of such an order is

purely ministerial.")). Because no order of dismissal has been signed, there is

no final judgment for purposes of appeal. In re Bennett, 960 S.W.2d at 38 (Tex.

1997).

Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed for want of jurisdiction. Appellants’

motion for emergency relief is dismissed as moot.

STEVE SMITH
Justice

OPINION DELIVERED and FILED: September 11, 2025
Before Chief Justice Johnson,
Justice Smith, and
Justice Harris
Appeal dismissed;
Motion dismissed
CV06

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