Cherry v. North American Lloyds of Texas

OPINION ON MOTION FOR REHEARING

Plaintiff filed a motion for rehearing asking this Court to consider the response he filed to the summary judgment as a motion to set aside the deemed admissions. Plaintiff relies on Tex.R.Civ.P. 1 and 71.

Under the misnomer of pleadings rule, Tex.R.Civ.P. 71, when a party mistakenly designates a pleading, the court may, if justice requires, treat it as a correctly named motion. An incorrect title to a pleading does not change the nature of the pleading. Dow Chem. Co. v. Public Util. Comm’n of Texas, 601 S.W.2d 506, 507 (Tex.Civ.App.—Beaumont 1980, writ ref’d n.r.e.) To determine what the pleading is, we look at the relief the party requests. State Bar of Texas v. Heard, 603 S.W.2d 829, 833 (Tex.1980).

After examining plaintiffs response to the motion for summary judgment, we conclude we are not able to consider it as a motion to set aside deemed admissions. Nowhere in the motion did plaintiff ask the trial court to withdraw or set aside the admissions. In the prayer to the motion, plaintiff merely asked for costs and attorney’s fees for the motion for summary judgment.

We overrule plaintiff’s motion for rehearing.