§ 25-1140.09.Bill of exceptions; preparation; court reporter; fees; procedure for preparation; taxation of cost.
Article 11: Trial · Last amended 2015 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section sets how a court reporter prepares and gets paid for a transcribed bill of exceptions, including a waiver for indigent criminal defendants and rules for taxing the fee to the losing party.
Full Text of § 25-1140.09
Text size
On the application of the county attorney or any party to a suit in which a record of the proceedings has been made, upon receipt of the notice provided in section 29-2525, or upon the filing of a praecipe for a bill of exceptions by an appealing party in the office of the clerk of the district court as provided in section 25-1140, the court reporter shall prepare a transcribed copy of the proceedings so recorded or any part thereof. The reporter shall be entitled to receive, in addition to his or her salary, a per-page fee as prescribed by the Supreme Court for the original copy and each additional copy, to be paid by the party requesting the same except as otherwise provided in this section.
When the transcribed copy of the proceedings is required by the county attorney, the fee therefor shall be paid by the county in the same manner as other claims are paid. When the defendant in a criminal case, after conviction, makes an
affidavit that he or she is unable by reason of his or her poverty to pay for such copy, the court or judge thereof may, by order endorsed on such affidavit, direct delivery of such transcribed copy to such defendant, and the fee shall be paid by the county in the same manner as other claims are allowed and paid. When such copy is prepared in any criminal case in which the sentence adjudged is capital, the fees therefor shall be paid by the county in the same manner as other claims are allowed or paid.
The fee for preparation of a bill of exceptions and the procedure for preparation, settlement, signature, allowance, certification, filing, and amendment of a bill of exceptions shall be regulated and governed by rules of practice prescribed by the Supreme Court. The fee paid shall be taxed, by the clerk of the district court, to the party against whom the judgment or decree is rendered except as otherwise ordered by the presiding district judge.
Source
Laws 1879, § 49, p. 93; Laws 1907, c. 43, § 1, p. 182; R.S.1913, § 1200; C.S.1922, § 1123; Laws 1925, c. 67, § 1, p. 225; C.S.1929, § 27-339; R.S.1943, § 24-342; Laws 1949, c. 45, § 1, p. 150; Laws 1957, c. 107, § 5, p. 380; Laws 1961, c. 104, § 1, p. 336; Laws 1961, c. 105, § 1, p. 337; Laws 1961, c. 106, § 1, p. 338; Laws 1971, LB 357, § 1; Laws 1973, LB 146, § 1; Laws 1973, LB 268, § 2; Laws 1974, LB 647, § 2; Laws 1978, LB 271, § 1; Laws 1982, LB 722, § 1; R.S.1943, (1985), § 24-342; Laws 1991, LB 37, § 1; Laws 2005, LB 348, § 3; Laws 2015, LB268, § 4; Referendum 2016, No. 426. Note: The changes made to section 25-1140.09 by Laws 2015, LB 268, section 4, have been omitted because of the vote on the referendum at the November 2016 general election.
Plain-English Summary
Once a bill of exceptions is requested, someone has to prepare it and someone has to pay for that work. Section 25-1140.09 covers both. On application by the county attorney or any party — including after a praecipe filed under § 25-1140 — the court reporter prepares a transcribed copy of the recorded proceedings, or any part of them, and is entitled to a per-page fee the Supreme Court prescribes for the original and for each additional copy.
Who pays that fee depends on the circumstances. The party requesting the transcript ordinarily pays it. When the county attorney needs a copy, the county pays as it would any other claim. A criminal defendant who swears, by affidavit, that poverty prevents payment can get the transcript at county expense on the court’s order, and the same county-paid rule applies without regard to poverty in any capital criminal case. Outside those situations, the clerk of the district court taxes the fee to the party against whom judgment is rendered, unless the presiding judge orders otherwise.
Despite sitting in the civil procedure chapter, this section’s substance runs largely to criminal appeals — it traces back to a criminal-procedure statute, § 24-342, before being renumbered here. Anyone researching transcript fees should read it with that origin in mind alongside the civil bill-of-exceptions sections around it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who prepares a transcribed bill of exceptions in Nebraska?
The court reporter, upon application of the county attorney or a party, or upon the filing of a praecipe for a bill of exceptions.
How much does a transcript cost?
The reporter is entitled to a per-page fee prescribed by the Supreme Court for the original copy and any additional copies, in addition to the reporter’s regular salary.
What if a criminal defendant cannot afford the transcript?
A defendant who submits an affidavit showing poverty prevents payment can obtain the transcript at county expense, by court order endorsed on the affidavit.
Who ultimately pays the transcript fee in a typical case?
The clerk of the district court taxes the fee to the party against whom the judgment or decree is rendered, unless the presiding judge orders otherwise.
Does this section apply the same way to capital criminal cases?
Yes, with one difference: when the transcript is prepared in a capital case, the fee is paid by the county in the same manner as other claims, regardless of the defendant’s financial circumstances.
Why does a civil procedure statute address criminal defendants and county attorneys?
The section originated as a criminal-procedure statute, § 24-342, and was later renumbered into this chapter, which explains its focus on criminal transcript fees alongside the civil bill-of-exceptions provisions nearby.
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
Also known as:court reporter transcript fee nebraskacost of bill of exceptionsindigent defendant free transcriptwho pays for trial transcript nebraska