Officer Robin Talley v. the City of Killeen, 2013 Tex. App. LEXIS 14166

Officer Robin Talley received written notice of indefinite suspension from the City of Killeen on Feb. 29, 2009, and the notice said an appeal must be filed "within 10 days."
Talley submitted a written appeal on the afternoon of March 6, 2009 — the tenth calendar day after she received the notice — before 5:00 p.m.
Killeen rejected the appeal as untimely, relying on its Civil Service Rule .053(B)(1), which defines "10 days" as "240 consecutive hours" (i.e., measured in hours from the time of receipt).
Talley sued for a declaration that her appeal was timely under Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code § 143.010(a); both parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment.
The trial court granted summary judgment for the City; the court of appeals reviewed statutory construction de novo and the undisputed facts.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code § 143.010(a) requires appeals to be filed within ten calendar days (date-based) or within 240 consecutive hours (hour-based) from notice	Talley: "within 10 days" means ten calendar days after the date of the action; her appeal (filed on the 10th calendar day) was timely	City: municipal rule measuring ten days as 240 consecutive hours controls; Talley’s filing exceeded 240 hours and was untimely	Court: "10 days" means ten calendar days after the date of the action; the City’s 240-hour rule conflicts with the statute and is unenforceable; Talley’s appeal was timely

Valence Operating Co. v. Dorsett, 164 S.W.3d 656 (Tex. 2005) (standard for reviewing competing summary-judgment motions and rendering the correct judgment)
State v. Shumake, 199 S.W.3d 279 (Tex. 2006) (statutory-construction questions reviewed de novo)
Entergy Gulf States, Inc. v. Summers, 282 S.W.3d 433 (Tex. 2009) (give effect to plain statutory language unless absurd)
Marks v. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hosp., 319 S.W.3d 658 (Tex. 2010) (statutes must be construed to give effect to all words used)
In re Walkup, 122 S.W.3d 215 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2003) ("day" commonly understood as a calendar day)