The Department’s brief was filed on March 1, 2017, along with a motion to exceed the word limit on the Department’s brief by 4,104 words. The Department’s motion is denied.

However, the brief has already been filed and due to the timetable in which we are to decide cases involving the termination of parental rights, we will not strike the Department’s brief. We have far more complex appeals involving much larger records

that are briefed within the word limits. We admonish the Department to strive harder to *2 limit its briefs to the number of words permitted by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. ^[1] Future briefs by the Department in excess of the word limit may be stricken.

PER CURIAM Before Chief Justice Gray,

Justice Davis, and

Justice Scoggins

Motion denied

Order issued and filed March 22, 2017

[1] As an example of what can be done, the Court was able to reduce the motion by 92 words primarily by eliminating paragraphs 4 and 5 of the motion which are repeated in the certificate of conference . In the Interest of A.S., J.S., A.S., and D.S., Children Page 2