Background
Wonisha Tatum sought to appeal two rulings arising from a protective-order proceeding: a September 17, 2024 contempt order and the trial court’s February 21, 2025 dismissal of her protective-order application. She filed her original notice of appeal on May 28, 2025.
After the court of appeals warned that the appeal was subject to dismissal for lack of jurisdiction, Tatum argued that the trial court clerk had mailed a letter of assignment to the wrong address. On July 6, 2026, she filed an amended notice seeking to convert the case into a restricted appeal.
The Court’s Holding
The court dismissed the challenge to the contempt order because Texas courts of appeals lack jurisdiction over direct appeals from contempt orders. It also held that Tatum’s notice of appeal from the February 2025 final judgment was untimely. The notice was due March 24, 2025, but was not filed until May 28, and Tatum had filed neither a deadline-extending postjudgment motion nor a motion for a 15-day extension.
The court further held that Tatum could not proceed by restricted appeal because she had participated through counsel in the hearing that produced the dismissal. Although Tatum did not personally attend, her attorney discussed her lack of communication, her apparent disinterest in continuing the case, her refusal to agree to a nonsuit, and counsel’s request to withdraw. Because counsel took part in the decision-making event leading to the judgment, the participation requirement for a restricted appeal was not satisfied.
Key Takeaways
- Texas contempt orders cannot be challenged through a direct appeal.
- A notice of appeal filed after the applicable deadline does not invoke appellate jurisdiction absent a valid extension.
- A party participates in the judgment-producing hearing when counsel appears and contributes to the decision-making event, even if the party is personally absent.
Why It Matters
The decision underscores that appellate deadlines and jurisdictional limits cannot be avoided by relabeling an untimely ordinary appeal as a restricted appeal. Participation through counsel may foreclose restricted review even when the client did not personally attend the dispositive hearing.