The referees shall be allowed such compensation for their services as the court may deem just and proper, which shall be taxed as a part of the costs in the case.
§ 25-1137.Referees; compensation.
Article 11: Trial · Not amended since original codification · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section gives the court discretion to set fair compensation for a referee’s work in a case, with that cost taxed against the parties as part of the case costs.
Full Text of § 25-1137
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 306, p. 445; R.S.1913, § 7875; C.S.1922, § 8820; C.S.1929, § 20-1137; R.S.1943, § 25-1137.
Plain-English Summary
A referee is someone the court appoints to handle part of a case on its behalf — taking testimony, hearing evidence, or reporting findings back to the judge. Nebraska law does not fix what a referee earns for that work. Instead, § 25-1137 leaves the amount to the court’s judgment, directing the judge to award whatever compensation seems just and proper given the referee’s time and effort.
Once the court sets that amount, it does not sit outside the normal cost structure of the case. The statute folds the referee’s pay into the taxed costs, the same category that covers filing fees, service fees, and other expenses charged against the losing party or otherwise allocated as the court directs. A party weighing whether to ask for a reference, or objecting to one, should account for this: referee fees become part of what the case costs to litigate, not a separate bill paid only by the party who requested the reference.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides how much a referee gets paid in a Nebraska case?
The court sets the amount, guided only by what it considers just and proper compensation for the referee’s work — the statute does not fix a rate.
What is a referee in this context?
A referee is a person the court appoints to perform some part of the judicial work in a case, such as taking testimony or reporting findings, in place of the judge handling that task directly.
Does the referee’s fee come out of a party’s pocket separately from other costs?
No. The fee is taxed as part of the costs of the case, the same pool of expenses that covers other litigation costs and gets allocated among the parties under the case’s cost rules.
Can a party challenge the amount the court awards a referee?
The statute gives the court discretion to set the amount, so a party who disagrees would need to raise that objection with the court before the compensation becomes final.
Does this section explain how a referee is appointed?
No. Section 25-1137 addresses only compensation once a referee has been appointed and has performed the work; it does not cover the appointment process itself.
Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are
reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the
Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
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