State v. Fernandez, 159 S.W.3d 678 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi-Edinburg 2004, no pet.).
In another case involving the estates of John G. Kenedy, Jr., his
wife, Elena, and his sister, Sarita, the appellate court held that it
had no jurisdiction over an interlocutory appeal filed by the State of
Texas. Texas appealed the trial court’s order to transfer to itself
bills of review filed in other courts by a purported heir who seeks to
reopen the estates. The court explained that although Civil Practice and
Remedies Code § 51.014(a)(8) gives the court jurisdiction over
interlocutory appeals from the denial of a governmental unit’s plea to
the jurisdiction, Texas had not sought dismissal of the bills of review.
Instead, Texas was attempting to show that the trial court’s transfer
order was void and this action is outside the scope of the statute.
Note: A lengthy concurring and dissenting opinion argues that the court
should have treated the appeal as a petition for a writ of mandamus and
then denied it.
Moral: A party relying on a statute to give a court appellate
jurisdiction should make certain the appeal falls within the statute’s
purview.