Every court of this state shall take judicial notice of the common law and statutes of every state, territory and other jurisdiction of the United States.
§ 25-12,101.Judicial notice.
Article 12: Evidence and Witnesses · Last amended 1947 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section opens Nebraska’s Uniform Judicial Notice of Foreign Law Act by requiring every Nebraska court to take judicial notice of the common law and the statutes of every other state, territory, and jurisdiction of the United States.
Full Text of § 25-12,101
Source
Laws 1947, c. 93, § 1, p. 272.
Plain-English Summary
Section 25-12,101 begins a short group of statutes, the Uniform Judicial Notice of Foreign Law Act, that changed how Nebraska courts handle out-of-state law. Instead of treating another state’s statutes or common law as a fact a party has to prove, the older approach reflected in section 25-1293, this section requires every Nebraska court to take judicial notice of them automatically.
The reach is broad: the common law and the statutes of every state, territory, and other jurisdiction of the United States. A litigant relying on the law of a sister state no longer needs to introduce evidence of what that law says; the court is required to know it, or to find out, on its own.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must Nebraska courts do under this section?
Take judicial notice of the common law and statutes of every other state, territory, and jurisdiction of the United States.
Does a party still need to prove another state’s law with witnesses or certified copies?
No, judicial notice takes the place of that kind of proof.
What act does this section belong to?
The Uniform Judicial Notice of Foreign Law Act.
Does this section cover the laws of foreign countries too?
No, it is limited to states, territories, and other jurisdictions of the United States.
How does this section change the older approach in section 25-1293?
It shifts sister-state law from something a party must prove as fact to something the court must judicially notice on its own.
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: uniform judicial notice of foreign law actjudicial notice of other states law nebraskacourt must notice sister state lawnebraska judicial notice statute