All judgments and orders must be entered on the record of the court and specify clearly the relief granted or order made in the action.
§ 25-1318.Judgments and orders; record.
Article 13: Judgments · Last amended 2018 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section requires every judgment and order to go on the court’s record and to state clearly what relief the court granted or what it ordered, so the record itself shows exactly what the court decided.
Full Text of § 25-1318
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 443, p. 467; R.S.1913, § 8011; C.S.1922, § 8952; C.S.1929, § 20-1318; R.S.1943, § 25-1318; Laws 2018, LB193, § 21.
Plain-English Summary
Section 25-1318 sets a basic recordkeeping rule: every judgment and every order a court enters must be entered on the record of the court. A decision that lives only in a judge’s notes, an oral ruling, or a lawyer’s recollection does not satisfy the statute on its own.
The entry has to do more than exist — it has to say something specific. The record must specify clearly the relief granted or the order made in the action. A vague entry that gestures at an outcome without stating it falls short of what the section requires.
This clarity requirement protects everyone who later needs to know what a court decided: the parties enforcing or appealing the judgment, the clerk executing on it, and any court asked to interpret it years afterward. A clear record answers those questions without guesswork.
Frequently Asked Questions
What has to happen to a Nebraska judgment or order for it to satisfy this section?
It must be entered on the record of the court, and that entry must specify clearly the relief granted or the order made.
Does an oral ruling from the bench satisfy this section by itself?
The statute requires entry on the record, so a ruling that has not yet been entered does not yet meet the requirement.
How specific does the record have to be about what the court decided?
It has to specify clearly the relief granted or the order made in the action — not merely note that some decision occurred.
Does this section apply to interlocutory orders or only final judgments?
It refers to both “judgments and orders,” so it reaches both categories entered in an action.
Why does clarity in the record matter?
Parties rely on it to enforce or appeal the decision, clerks rely on it to carry out what the court ordered, and later courts rely on it to interpret the case.
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: nebraska judgment must be entered on recordclear judgment entry requirement nebraskarecording court orders nebraskajudgment record requirement