Crystal Bingham Hernandez v. Tiffany Polley, 03-15-00384-CV

Appellee Polley moved to dismiss Hernandez's suit as a discovery sanction after two years of noncompliance with court orders.
An agreed order (Sept. 27, 2013) required Hernandez to produce extensive information, including other insurance and EOB documents.
Hernandez failed to produce the documents; a motion to dismiss was filed June 30, 2014, and heard Oct. 7, 2014.
At the Oct. 7, 2014 hearing Hernandez produced documents only after the motion to dismiss and admitted incomplete production.
The trial court warned it would dismiss if Hernandez did not fully comply by a later date, and ultimately dismissed the case after continued noncompliance.
Texas Insurance Code sections 462.251–462.253 govern exhaustion of other policies and the effect of reductions/credits on claims against an impaired insurer; sanctions were tied to the requirement to exhaust other insurance and produce related documents.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether dismissal as a sanction was proper	Hernandez argues lesser sanctions should have been tried first	Polley argues dismissal was proper for persistent noncompliance	Dismissal affirmed
Whether the court properly addressed findings of fact/conclusions of law	Hernandez sought findings closest to her draft wording	Polley contends Rule 296 allows the court to craft its own findings	Findings need not mirror proposed wording; written findings suffice and dismissal supported by record

Bodnow Corp. v. City of Hondo, 721 S.W.2d 839 (Tex. 1986) (sanctions and abuse of discovery scrutinized by Texas Supreme Court)
Bowie Mem'l Hosp. v. Wright, 79 S.W.3d 48 (Tex. 2002) (abuse of discretion standard for sanctions; deference to trial court)
Transamerica Natural Gas Corp. v. Powell, 811 S.W.2d 844 (Tex. 1992) (discovery sanctions may dispose of claims if lesser sanctions fail)
Cire v. Cummings, 134 S.W.3d 835 (Tex. 2004) (limits on when to require testing of lesser sanctions; emphasis on exceptional misconduct)