Opinion
No. 14-07-00364-CV
May 8, 2007.
On Appeal from the 12th District Court, Walker County, Texas, Trial Court Cause No. 21,738.
Panel consists of Justices YATES, EDELMAN and SEYMORE.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Arcade Joseph Comeaux, Jr., acting pro se, has filed what is denominated as "Relator's/Plaintiff's Motion Requesting Leave to File a Writ of Mandamus and To Appoint an Attorney" in connection with Cause 21 738 pending in the 12th Judicial District Court of Walker County, Texas. Preliminarily, leave is no longer a prerequisite to the filing of a petition for writ of mandamus. More importantly, Walker County is no longer within the Fourteenth Court of Appeals District.
Each court of appeals has jurisdiction to issue a writ of mandamus "against a judge of a district or county court in the court of appeals district." TEX. GOV'T CODE `22.221(b)(1). Although Walker County courts were at one time within the Fourteenth Court of Appeals District, since September 1, 2005 they have been within the Tenth Court of Appeals District (Waco). Compare TEX. GOV'T CODE `22.201(o) (Vernon 2004) with id. ` 22.201(k) (Vernon Supp. 2006).
In an opinion issued November 8, 2005 (14-02-12383-CV) on Relator's appeal of the trial court's dismissal of the underlying case, this Court reversed and remanded the case for further proceedings. Our proper exercise of jurisdiction over that appeal does not serve to give us jurisdiction over this mandamus proceeding, even though both arise out of the same case pending in Walker County.
While our opinion was issued after the effective date of the transfer of Walker County from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals District to the Tenth District, jurisdiction over the appeal of the dismissal would have been established on the date such appeal was filed. Such appeal was filed in November of 2002, before the September 1, 2005 effective date of the transfer of Walker County to the Tenth Court of Appeals District.
The motion requesting leave to file a writ of mandamus and to appoint an attorney is dismissed for want of jurisdiction, without prejudice to Relator's right to present his requests to the proper court of appeals.