If your client has authorized the initiation of a property tax lawsuit, make sure (absolutely make sure) they understand the filing deadline is unforgiving. Be vigilant and ensure the deadline is correctly calendared and followed. File early if anything!

Without knowing much, all Texas property tax professionals should know that Section 42.21(a) establishes a time limit for suing an appraisal district — 60 days after receiving notice of the board order. Okay, but how is the 60-day deadline calculated? This is guided by Rule 4 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.

When computing a period under Rule 4 the first day is excluded and the last day is included. Meaning for property tax lawsuits, exclude the day the notice was received, and count 60 days from the following day and include the last day, which is the deadline (unless it is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, in which event the period runs until the end of the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday).

As mentioned, the 60-day deadline is unforgiving. So, file without delay. You do not want to fall victim to what happened to Shu Sean Zheng.

Harris Cent. Appraisal Dist. v. Zheng, No. 01-23-00186-CV, 2024 WL 234416, at *1 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] Jan. 23, 2024, no pet.)
In Harris Central Appraisal District v. Zheng, Zheng received notice of the 2020 tax year board order on September 5, 2020, making the 60-day deadline November 4, 2020. Zheng did not file the 2020 tax year lawsuit until November 12, 2020. He then later amended his lawsuit to add challenges for the 2021 and 2022 tax years.

HCAD argued that Zheng did not timely file the 2020 lawsuit and because of that the trial court lacked jurisdiction not only over Zheng’s initial challenge to the 2020 tax year but also over his subsequent amendments challenging the 2021 and 2022 tax years.

Zheng made a variety of different arguments in response. One was that he intended to file the 2020 lawsuit timely but couldn’t because he suffered a flesh wound where his left thumb was lacerated by a knife to a depth of half inch. The 1st Court rejected this argument and recognized Zheng’s excuse as an acknowledgement that he failed to file the lawsuit by the 60-day deadline.

Zheng then argued that he timely amended his lawsuit to challenge the 2021 and 2022 tax years, so even if the trial court lack’s jurisdiction over his 2020 lawsuit, the trial court has jurisdiction over his 2021 and 2022 claims. The 1st Court rejected this argument and agreed with HCAD that the relevant time to determine jurisdiction is when the suit is initially filed, not amended. And because Zheng’s 2020 lawsuit was late, the trial court lacked jurisdiction over Zheng’s challenge to the 2020 tax year and any subsequent tax year amended into that lawsuit, even if those later tax years were timely filed.

Following these rejections, the 1st Court reversed the trial court’s order denying HCAD’s plea to the jurisdiction and rendered judgment dismissing Zheng’s claims for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

The takeaway from this case is do not wait; file early if anything! The 60-day deadline must be computed correctly, and it is unforgiving if missed, even by a day. Your client’s appeal can and will be dismissed, not only for the initial tax year but subsequent tax years amended into that suit. And all of this exists regardless of extenuating circumstances. So, be vigilant in tracking deadlines—it is essential to protecting clients’ interests in property tax disputes.

Tex. Tax Code § 42.21(a):
(a) A party who appeals as provided by this chapter must file a petition for review with the district court within 60 days after the party received notice that a final order has been entered from which an appeal may be had or at any time after the hearing but before the 60-day deadline.  Failure to timely file a petition bars any appeal under this chapter.

---

To review the Opinion from Harris Cent. Appraisal Dist. v. Zheng, click the following link (or copy and paste): https://search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=82de247b-32b6-4bac-bc35-d051520e00cc&coa=coa01&DT=Opinion&MediaID=4bc8c61b-83a4-4d5e-abb5-61ac4a60328e.

---

Key Sections of Texas Property Tax Code: 
§ 42.21, Petition for Review  

---