Summary
holding final judgment awarding interpleaded funds to plaintiff mooted defendant's mandamus petition challenging prior order allowing interpleader and disbursing some but not all interpleaded funds to plaintiff
Summary of this case from Elec. Reliability Council of Tex., Inc. v. Panda Power Generation Infrastructure Fund, LLCOpinion
No. 01-05-00851-CV
Opinion issued September 11, 2006.
Original Proceeding on Petition for Writ of Mandamus.
Panel consists of Chief Justice RADACK and Justices TAFT and NUCHIA.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Relator D. Glen Gee filed a petition for a writ of mandamus, complaining of Judge Hancock's August 29, 2005 orders (1) disbursing funds deposited into the registry of the trial court and (2) severing Reef Exploration, Inc.'s plea in intervention and petition on interpleader into a new case. On December 12, 2005, the trial court signed a final judgment in favor of Eos Energy, L.L.C., holding that Gee committed common — law and statutory fraud and that he breached his fiduciary duty to Eos. Gee filed a notice of appeal, the appeal was assigned to the Fourteenth Court of Appeals, and that Court dismissed Gee's appeal for want of prosecution on July 27, 2006. The funds deposited into the registry of the court were maintained in the original case between Eos and Gee, case number 2002-61811, and the last order for disbursement of funds was made on December 12, 2005.
The Honorable Patricia Hancock, judge of the 113th District Court of Harris County, Texas. The underlying lawsuits are Eos Energy, L.L.C. v. Gee, No. 2002-61811 (113th Dist. Ct., Harris County, Tex., Dec. 12, 2005), appeal dismissed for want of prosecution, 14-06-00366-CV (Tex.App.-Houston [14th Dist.] July 27, 2006, no pet. h.) and Reef Exploration, Inc. v. Eos Energy, L.L.C., No. 2002-61811A (113th Dict. Ct., Harris County, Tex.).
The Clerk of this Court asked Gee to file a response indicating why this mandamus proceeding was not moot in light of the December 12, 2005 final judgment. Gee responded that because there has been no judgment rendered in the severed proceeding in case number 2002-61811A, the mandamus proceeding is not moot because the trial court can continue to allow the clerk to disburse the funds Reef Exploration interpleaded into the registry of the court. Finally, Gee argued that the mandamus proceeding is not moot because there have been no further proceedings in the severed case.
Because the December 12, 2005 judgment determined that Gee has no legal right to the funds interpleaded by Reef Exploration into the registry of the court in case number 2002-61811, we hold that the December 12, 2005 judgment has rendered this proceeding moot. Furthermore, Gee has not demonstrated how the alleged lack of proceedings in the severed case affects his legal interests now that an adverse final judgment has been rendered against him.
We dismiss as moot the petition for a writ of mandamus.