How Quickly Can You Get Your Writ of Possession on Appeal?

In the past, the courts relied on the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, specifically section 510. And I am not going to bog you down with statutes. But in those statutes, there was a limitation placed on when a Landlord was able to get what is called a Writ of Possession.

The Writ of Possession is the legal document that the court signs, which orders the Tenant to be removed, enforced by the County Constables. Essentially, it is the document that allows you to kick the Tenant out after you have won the case.

This document is extremely important, particularly when the Tenant refuses to leave. It used to be available in six days. That’s still true in the Justice Court, and it used to be true in the County Court until the law changed. A recent ruling by the Supreme Court changed the way that the courts are dealing with the Writ of Possession.

A Tenant can actually appeal one more time. And it is something nobody likes hearing. Everybody’s always shocked. People faint in the middle of a consultation: “They can appeal again?” – The Landlords just can’t believe it.

Yes, one can appeal all the way up to the Texas Supreme Court, but it almost never happens. Especially, these second appeals are extremely rare, but they do, from time to time, happen.

So, if somebody is going to appeal, generally they require paying what’s called a supersedeas bond. If they do pay that bond, they might get to stay.

The minimum amount of time that I’ve seen these go is 10 months. So, the minimum amount that the courts require is a supersedeas bond for 10 months’ worth of rent. Of course, these are general terms and they are not always the same.

But the supersedeas rule that was always 10 days has changed to the writ of possession rule. Generally speaking, you are entitled to the writ of possession in six days. But since you have 10 days to pay that bond, the courts got efficient and put those two things together.

It’s not codified in the statute yet. It’s probably coming. In the meantime, because the courts are ruling this way, it’s important to know that. If you go to judgment on an appeal, the Tenant is going to get an additional 10 days minimum on the premises.

So, you may have won your judgment, but you are still going to wait 10 days. And then, on day 11, you can get your writ of possession.

The truth is it takes much more time. We’ll talk about what kinds of work around you can do later. Right now, the important thing to know is that in Justice Court you get 6 days, but in County Court, there are 10.

Those days add up, and they can be extremely significant. It’s important to calculate that in your potential rent loss if you are unable to settle.

That’s always some kind of a leverage that I use when we’re talking settlement between the Landlord and the Tenant. In the back of my mind I know: “They are going to get 10 days anyway. So, getting to the end of the month maybe isn’t that big of a deal,” or whatever scenario we’re looking at to file a settlement.

In any case, use this time limitation to construct things in your favor when you’re seeking a settlement, and things will go better for you.

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