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T.G. v. Etowah County Department of Human Resources
Citations: 937 So. 2d 523; 2005 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 756; 2005 WL 3445604Docket: 2040658
Court: Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama; December 15, 2005; Alabama; State Appellate Court
T.G., the mother, appeals the termination of her parental rights to her children, B.N.C., A.C.G., and A.B.C. The Etowah County Department of Human Resources (DHR) seeks to dismiss her appeal, claiming it was not timely filed. DHR's petition to terminate parental rights was filed on October 18, 2004, and the juvenile court issued a final judgment on March 28, 2005. The mother filed a post-judgment motion on April 6, 2005, but it was stamped as filed on April 15, 2005. The juvenile court noted that the mother had 14 days from April 15 to appeal. The mother filed her notice of appeal on April 20, 2005, which DHR contends is untimely because it exceeds the 14-day window following the judgment. The mother argues her motion was timely filed on April 6, which should have tolled the appeal period. She claims the clerk's office has a history of delays in stamping filings. However, she did not provide evidence proving she submitted her motion on April 6. While the clerk's procedures indicate filings are stamped the same day received, affidavits from court employees do not confirm the filing date of the mother’s motion. Ultimately, the court grants DHR's motion to dismiss the appeal due to its untimeliness. The mother failed to provide evidence that her post-judgment motion was filed on April 6, 2005; instead, an affidavit confirmed that it was filed on April 15, 2005. As this date was beyond the 14-day limit following the March 28, 2005, final judgment, the post-judgment motion did not toll the time for filing a notice of appeal. Alabama law requires all post-judgment motions to be filed within 14 days, and the juvenile court's notation regarding the appeal timeframe did not extend the mother's deadline. Without statutory authority, the courts cannot alter the time for appeal, even in cases of mistake or accident. Consequently, the mother's notice of appeal filed on April 20, 2005, is deemed untimely, leading to the dismissal of her appeal as requested by the Department of Human Resources (DHR). The ruling was concurred by Judges Crawley, Thompson, Pittman, and Murdock.