Associate Judge’s Report and Order is still a final order, but...

While the case set forth in my 10/27/12 post still appears to be the law, this 12/11/13 Fourth Court Opinion says that if the handwritten Associate Judge’s Report and Order lacks a best-interest finding, lacks identifying information, and uses vague abbreviations for the grounds of termination, then the Fourth Court cannot conduct a proper review of the evidence, which requires them to reverse that portion of the order terminating appellant’s parental rights and remand the case to the trial court for further proceedings in the interest of justice.
http://www.search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=1a3d035f-687c-4738-bc74-8750309907dd&coa=coa04&DT=Opinion&MediaID=23bffcb1-51e8-429b-9940-b5c7245c60d6

waiver of issue on appeal - trial court should not consider evidence from temporary orders hearing

Reminder to trial attorneys: You waive the issue on appeal that the trial court should not have considered the evidence from the temporary orders hearing at the trial if you fail to raise an objection during trial (Anastasi v. Anastasi, 2013 Tex. App. LEXIS 14994, *9-10 (Tex. App.-Beaumont Dec. 12, 2013)

Very important Fourth Court Opinion

This 10/3/12 Fourth Court Opinion says that the date the associate judge signs his informal, handwritten Associate Judge’s Report and Order starts the timeline for appeal documents to be filed, NOT the date he signs the formal, type-written Final Order:

http://www.search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=18c6a6fa-13ed-4cca-aea2-6c982f6212bd&coa=coa04&DT=Opinion&MediaID=a340c601-8093-4d03-92e5-58d9cb2edb53
At the Ad Litem Seminar yesterday, Judge Garcia, who wrote the Associate Judge’s Report and Order in this case, said he never intended this outcome and will try to avoid it in the future by either [1] making his notations in the Judge's Notes or [2] by writing on the Associate Judge’s Report and Order that it is not a final order and striking through the language that all parties have been notified of the contents of the Associate Judge’s Report and Order.

Rosie Gonzalez intends to establish a Political Action Committee for
Family Court Lawyers, "FCL-PAC".  Anyone interested may contact her at rosie@rosiegonzalezattorney.com.

Election Results

George Willingham was elected President of the Children's Court Attorneys' Association yesterday in a run-off election with Rosie Gonzalez.

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