No Verification, No Save

The plaintiff in Vallejo v. Helge, faced with a dismissal for want of prosecution, timely filed a motion to reinstate and then obtained a default judgment.

So far so good. But the defendant appealed, and the Fifth Court noted that the motion to reinstate was not verified–a requirement of the relevant rule and supreme court precedent. The motion was thus ineffective, which meant that the Court had to then “vacate the void judgment and dismiss the appeal.” No. 05-23-00573-CV (Nov. 15, 2023) (mem. op.).