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Estate Administration

Appeal

    Villarreal v. Zukowsky, 54 S.W.3d 926 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi 2001, no pet. h.).

    The appellate court examined the language in the lower court’s order regarding the construction of a will and determined that it did not have jurisdiction over the appeal.  The court deemed the order interlocutory in nature even though it contained a “Mother Hubbard” clause and was called a “final” judgment.  The judgment did not actually dispose of all the claims before the court and thus was merely interlocutory.

    Moral:  Before appealing a lower court’s judgment, make sure the judgment is actually final.