Erma J. Matthews v. Jerome Solomon C/O Epoch Films, Inc. Mindy Goldberg, and Others

ACCEPTED 03-15-00474-CV 7405574 THIRD COURT OF APPEALS AUSTIN, TEXAS 10/16/2015 10:07:33 AM JEFFREY D. KYLE CLERK NO. 03-15-00474-CV FILED IN IN THE COURT OF APPEALS 3rd COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD DISTRICT OF TEXAS AUSTIN, TEXAS AT AUSTIN, TEXAS 10/16/2015 10:07:33 AM JEFFREY D. KYLE Clerk ERMA J. MATTHEWS, Appellant, v. JEROME SOLOMON C/0 EPOCH FILMS, INC., MINDY GOLDBERG, AND OTHERS, Appellees. On Appeal from the 423rd Judicial District Court of Bastrop County, Texas (Honorable Christopher D. Duggan, of the 423rd Judicial District Court, Presiding) Trial Court Cause No. 423-3470 APPELLEES' FIRST MOTION TO EXTEND TIME TO FILE APPELLEES' BRIEF Robert P. Latham State Bar No. 11975500 blatham@jw.com Noah M. Galton State Bar No. 24078531 ngalton@jw.com Jackson Walker L.L.P. 100 Congress Avenue, Suite 1100 Austin, Texas 78701 (512) 236-2000- Telephone (512) 236-2002- Fax ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES JEROME SOLOMON AND MINDY GOLDBERG IDENTITY OF PARTIES AND COUNSEL 1. Appellant ERMA J. MATTHEWS Represented by: ProSe 25491 Beresford Drive South Riding, VA 20152 Telephone: 571-933-8413 Facsimile: 571-933-8413 Email: ermajmatthews@yahoo.com 2. Appellees JEROME SOLOMON MINDY GOLDBERG Represented by: Robert P. Latham State Bar No. 11975500 blatham@jw.com Noah M. Galton State Bar No. 24078531 ngalton@jw.com Jackson Walker L.L.P. 100 Congress Avenue, Suite 1100 Austin, Texas 78701 (512) 236-2000- Telephone (512) 236-2002- Fax 11 TO THE HONORABLE COURT: NOW COME Jerome Solomon and Mindy Goldberg, Appellees herein and Defendants before the trial court below, and submit their First Motion to Extend Time to File Appellees' Brief, and would respectfully show as follows: I. BACKGROUND 1. On October 13, 2015, Appellant Erma J. Matthews ("Appellant") left a voicemail for Appellees' counsel in regard to an extension of Appellant's briefing deadline. Appellant did not specify a specific duration for her desired extension. On October 14, 2015, in response to an inquiry from Appellees' counsel, Appellant informed Appellees' counsel that she would be seeking a month-long extension. That same day, Appellant filed her First Motion to Extend Time to File Appellant's Brief. 2. On October 15, 2015, this Court granted Appellant's request, and ordered that Appellant's briefing deadline be extended to November 23, 2015. 3. If Appellant's brief is filed on November 23, 2015, Appellees' brief will be due on December 23, 2015. See TEX. R. APP. P. 38.6(b). II. ARGUMENT & AUTHORITY 4. Now that Appellant's requested extension has been granted, Appellees request a reciprocal 30-day extension to file their brief for the following reasons: First, Appellees' counsel, Noah Galton, is currently set for a 2-week trial in El 1 Paso, Texas, beginning on December 4, 2015. Mr. Galton is the primary attorney who has handled the present lawsuit, both at the trial level and before this Court. Second, with Appellant's request having been granted, Appellees' briefing schedule will now encompass the Thanksgiving holiday, as well as several important religious holidays. As such, Appellees' ability to digest Appellant's brief and draft their own brief will prove unworkable if Appellees are not granted an extension. 5. In response to Appellant's October 13 request to Appellees' counsel, Appellees' counsel informed Appellant of the aforementioned facts. Additionally, Appellees' counsel conveyed to Appellant that, while Appellees would like to accommodate Appellant's request, Appellees could only do so if Appellant were willing to agree to a reciprocal 30-day extension for Appellees' briefing deadline (allowing Appellees a total of 60 days to respond to Appellant's brief from the date Appellant's brief is filed). 6. Appellant has not responded to Appellees' requested compromise. 7. Because Appellant's new deadline places Appellees at an undue hardship, Appellees - pursuant to Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 38.6(d) - move for this Court to grant Appellees a reciprocal 30-day extension to file their appellate brief (allowing Appellees a total of 60 days to respond to Appellant's brief from the date Appellant's brief is filed). If Appellant files her brief on 2 November 23, 2015 (Appellant's new deadline), Appellees' extended deadline will be January 22, 2016. 8. This is the first extension sought by Appellees in this matter. III. PRAYER 9. For the aforementioned reasons, Appellees respectfully request that this Court grant Appellees a 30-day extension to file their appellate brief (allowing Appellees a total of 60 days to respond to Appellant's brief from the date Appellant's brief is filed). Respectfully submitted, JACKSON WALKER L.L.P. By: Is/ Noah M Galton Robert P. Latham State Bar No. 11975500 blatham@jw .com Noah M. Galton State Bar No. 24078531 ngalton@jw.com Jackson Walker L.L.P. 100 Congress Avenue, Suite 1100 Austin, Texas 78701 (512) 236-2000- Telephone (512) 236-2002- Fax ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES JEROME SOLOMON AND MINDY GOLDBERG 3 RULE 9.4 CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE This document complies with the typeface requirements of TEX. R. APP. P. 9 .4(e) because it has been prepared in a conventional typeface no smaller than 14- point for text and 12-point for footnotes. This document also complies with the word-count limitations of TEX. R. APP. P. 9.4(i), if applicable, because it contains 488 words, excluding any parts exempted by TEX. R. APP. P. 9.4(i)(l). Is/ Noah M Galton Noah M. Galton CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE This is to certify that on October 14, 2015, Appellees' counsel attempted to confer with Appellant about the merits of the foregoing, and Appellant did not respond in regard to Appellees' requested relief. Is/ Noah M Galton Noah M. Galton CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE This is to certify that on this 16th day of October, 2015, a true and correct copy of the above and foregoing document was electronically mailed to the parties registered or otherwise entitled to receive electronic notices in this case pursuant to the Electronic Filing Procedures in this Court and/or via certified mail, return receipt requested upon: Erma J. Matthews, ProSe 25491 Beresford Drive South Riding, VA 20152 Facsimile: 571-933-8413 Is/ Noah M Galton Noah M. Galton 14940418v.l 4