In the
Court of Appeals
Second Appellate District of Texas
at Fort Worth
___________________________
No. 02-23-00190-CV
___________________________
IN THE INTEREST OF K.E., A CHILD
On Appeal from the 442nd District Court
Denton County, Texas
Trial Court No. 22-6200-442
Before Wallach, J.; Sudderth, C.J.; and Walker, J.
Per Curiam Memorandum Opinion
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Appellant P.E.1 (Father) filed this appeal from the trial court’s order in a suit
affecting the parent–child relationship involving his son, K.E. The trial court signed
the order on April 5, 2023, but Father did not file his notice of appeal until June 1,
2023. See Tex. R. App. P. 26.1.
Concerned that we did not have jurisdiction over the appeal because the notice
of appeal had not been timely filed, we notified Father that the appeal could be
dismissed for want of jurisdiction unless, within ten days, he or another party filed
with this court a response showing grounds for continuing the appeal. See Tex. R.
App. P. 42.3(a), 44.3. Father filed a response in which he stated that he “was reaching
out to [the] child support office [and] didn’t understand [the] appeal process.”
The timely filing of a notice of appeal is jurisdictional. In re K.M.Z., 178 S.W.3d
432, 433 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2005, no pet.). In a non-accelerated civil case, the
notice of appeal must be filed within thirty days after the date on which the judgment
is signed. See Tex. R. App. P. 26.1. The appellate court may extend the time to file the
notice of appeal if, within fifteen days after the deadline for filing the notice of appeal,
the party files the notice of appeal along with a motion for extension of time. See Tex.
R. App. P. 26.3. Thus, if a party wishing to appeal has not filed any postjudgment
motions to extend the appellate deadline, the party must file a notice of appeal within
To preserve the privacy of the child, we identify the parties by pseudonyms.
1
See Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 109.002(d).
2
forty-five days of the trial court’s final judgment. Satterthwaite v. First Bank, No. 02-20-
00182-CV, 2020 WL 4359400, at *1 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth July 30, 2020, no pet.)
(mem. op.).
Even if Father had filed a motion to extend time with his notice of appeal, the
notice of appeal would have been untimely. See Tex. R. App. 26.1, 26.3. Because the
notice of appeal was not timely filed, we have no jurisdiction, and our only option is
to dismiss the appeal. See Verburgt v. Dorner, 959 S.W.2d 615, 617 (Tex. 1997) (stating
that once the period for granting a motion for extension of time has passed, a party
can no longer invoke the appellate court’s jurisdiction). Accordingly, we dismiss the
appeal for want of jurisdiction. See Tex. R. App. P. 42.3(a), 43.2(f).
Per Curiam
Delivered: June 29, 2023
3