In The
Court of Appeals
Sixth Appellate District of Texas at Texarkana
No. 06-14-00052-CV
IN THE INTEREST OF P.D. AND C.D., CHILDREN
On Appeal from the 402nd Judicial District Court
Wood County, Texas
Trial Court No. 2013-378
Before Morriss, C.J., Carter and Moseley, JJ.
ORDER
Alexandria Dollinger appeals from the termination of her parental-rights to P.D. and C.D.
The clerk’s record in this accelerated appeal was filed June 18, 2014, and the reporter’s record
was filed June 23, making Dollinger’s brief originally due July 14. Having received neither
Dollinger’s brief nor a motion to extend the deadline for filing that brief, our clerk’s office sent
Dollinger’s counsel a notice dated July 28, which established a new briefing deadline—
August 12—and warned that the failure to meet this deadline could result in dismissal of
Dollinger’s appeal for want of prosecution. See TEX. R. APP. P. 38.8(a)(1).
On August 11, counsel filed a motion seeking a fifteen-day extension of the August 12
briefing deadline. In this motion, counsel provided a quite-reasonable explanation of the
circumstances that had prevented his timely filing of Dollinger’s brief. We note that counsel has
endured an extraordinarily difficult set of circumstances over the past six months, and we are not
unsympathetic to his situation.
However, the difficult circumstances of counsel’s personal life are not the only factors
involved in this particular case. This is an appeal from the termination of Dollinger’s parental
rights to P.D. and C.D., which, by statute, is accelerated. See TEX. FAM. CODE ANN.
§ 109.002(a) (West 2014). Further, under Rule 6.2(a) of the Texas Rules of Judicial
Administration, we are required, “so far as reasonably possible, [to] ensure that the appeal is
brought to final disposition” within 180 days of the date the notice of appeal was filed. See TEX.
R. JUD. ADMIN. 6.2. After weighing these considerations, we feel compelled to overrule
Dollinger’s motion for an extension of time and to order the brief filed. While our sympathies
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for counsel’s plight gave us more than a moment’s pause regarding entry of this order, we were
bolstered by counsel’s confidence that he could complete and file the brief within the fifteen-day
extension he sought in his motion.
By this order, we set the final deadline for filing appellant’s brief as August 27, 2014,
which gives counsel the full fifteen days he requested to complete the brief. Should appellant
fail to file a brief within the time allotted, this appeal may be dismissed for want of prosecution.
See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.3.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
BY THE COURT
Date: August 14, 2014
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