Second Court of Appeals

Summaries of Civil Opinions and Published Criminal Opinions Issued - Week of September 10, 2018.

NOTE: Summaries are prepared by the court's staff attorneys and law clerks for public information only and reflect his or her interpretation alone of the facts and legal issues. The summaries are not part of the court's opinion in the case and should not be cited to, quoted, or relied upon as the opinion of the court.

Links to full text of opinions (PDF version) can be accessed by clicking the cause number.

In re P.K., Nos. 02-17-00213-CV, 02-18-00017-CV (Sept. 13, 2018) (Pittman, J., joined by Walker, J., and Charles Bleil (Senior Justice, Retired, Sitting by Assignment)).

Held:  Appellee and Appellant divorced in 2005.  While that case was pending, Appellee and her family members sued Appellant for various tort claims.  The attorneys who represented Appellee and her family members in the tort case, but not the divorce case, worked at the same firm as an attorney who later became the presiding judge of the 16th District Court of Denton County.  In 2014, Appellee filed a petition to modify the parent-child relationship in the 16th District Court.  Appellant filed a counterpetition, and both parties filed a petition for enforcement.  Appellant then moved to disqualify the trial judge on the basis that the previous tort case was the same matter as the modification and enforcement proceedings before the trial court.  The presiding judge of the Eighth Administrative Judicial Region denied Appellant’s motion to disqualify.  Because the previous tort case is not the same matter as the modification and enforcement proceedings, we affirm the denial of the disqualification motion.