Bethany v. Bethany, No. 03-19-00532-CV, 2020 WL 1327398 (Tex. App.—Austin Mar. 30, 2020, no pet. h.).
A disgruntled successor executor unsuccessfully attempted to remove the primary independent executor. On appeal, the court held it lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal because the trial court’s judgment was not final. The court explained that the disgruntled successor executor’s motion for removal also included claims for attorney’s fees, costs, and expenses. The trial court did not address these claims and thus the order refusing to remove the executor did not dispose of all the issues in this phase of the probate proceedings.
Moral: A probate judgment must dispose of all parties or issues in a particular phase of a probate proceeding before it is appealable.