Estate of Long, No. 06-23-00025-CV, 2023 WL 4240230 (Tex. App.—Texarkana June 19, 2023, pet. filed).
The trial court issued a summary judgment construing the decedent’s will regarding the residue of the estate. The court dismissed an appeal of the summary judgment because this trial court order was not final and did not end a discrete phase of the probate proceeding. The court explained that the order only determined that the residuary clause lapsed but did not determine the identity of the testator’s heirs or to whom the residuary would pass. Thus, because the order did “not dispose of all parties and issues at this stage of the proceeding, it is not a final, appealable order.” Id. at *4.
Moral: Before appealing a trial court’s order, be certain that it is a final order or one that is otherwise appealable.