Harryett H. Knox v. Betty Knox Long

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court reversed the trial court's default judgment against Harryett H. Knox and remanded the case for retrial, holding that the August 8, 1950 dismissal order was a clerical error, not a valid judgment, and that the trial court erred in depriving Mrs. Knox of her defenses. The Court affirmed that a court may correct such clerical entries without a bill of review and that Rule 202 does not permit a default judgment absent statutory authority. Justice Garwood, dissenting, argued that the dismissal order was a proper judgment and should have resulted in the case being stricken. The dissent also contended that the majority improperly overruled Love v. State Bank.