The certificate of a public officer that he has made diligent and ineffectual search for a paper in his office is of the same efficacy in all cases as if such officer had personally appeared and sworn to such facts.
§ 25-1282.Official records; proof of lack of record.
Article 12: Evidence and Witnesses · Not amended since original codification · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section gives a public officer’s certificate of a diligent but unsuccessful search for a paper the same evidentiary force as if the officer had personally appeared in court and sworn to that fact.
Full Text of § 25-1282
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 410, p. 462; R.S.1913, § 7975; C.S.1922, § 8916; C.S.1929, § 20-1282; R.S.1943, § 25-1282.
Plain-English Summary
Proving a negative is hard; how do you show a document does not exist? Section 25-1282 answers that question for public records. If a public officer certifies that a diligent and ineffectual search was made for a paper in the office, that certificate carries the same weight as if the officer had appeared in court and sworn to the same facts under oath.
The practical effect is that a party trying to show a record was never filed, or can no longer be found, does not need to pull the custodian away from other duties for live testimony. The written certificate does the same work, provided the search behind it was diligent and turned up nothing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What problem does this section solve?
How to prove a public record does not exist, without calling the record custodian to testify in person.
What must the officer’s certificate state?
That the officer made a diligent and ineffectual search for the paper in the office.
Does the certificate carry the same weight as courtroom testimony?
Yes, the section gives it the same efficacy as if the officer had personally appeared and sworn to the facts.
Does the search have to meet any particular standard?
Yes, the search must be diligent, not a token effort, and it must have been ineffectual.
Who benefits from using this section instead of calling the custodian as a witness?
A party who needs to show a record’s absence without the delay and cost of live testimony.
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: proving a record does not existcertificate of diligent search nebraskano record found affidavitproof of missing public recordnebraska statute lack of record