Gary Taylor v. SeaHarbor Insurance and Mariam Abdalla

Summary

The Texas Court of Appeals for the Second Appellate District dismissed Gary Taylor’s appeal for want of jurisdiction. The court held that the order granting SeaHarbor Insurance’s Rule 91a motion did not dispose of Taylor’s claims against co-defendant Mariam Abdalla and was neither a final judgment nor an appealable interlocutory order.

Holdings

1. An order granting a Rule 91a motion to dismiss is not a final judgment when it does not dispose of all claims and parties and does not clearly and unequivocally state that it finally disposes of all claims and parties.
2. An order granting a Rule 91a motion to dismiss is not an appealable interlocutory order under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 51.014(a).
3. The appeal must be dismissed for want of jurisdiction because the challenged order was neither a final judgment nor an appealable interlocutory order.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court's order granting SeaHarbor Insurance's Rule 91a motion to dismiss was a final judgment appealable as of right when claims against co-defendant Mariam Abdalla remained pending.
2. Whether the order was an appealable interlocutory order under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 51.014(a).

Disposition

dismissed