If a judgment becomes dormant, it may be revived in the same manner as is prescribed for reviving actions before judgment; Provided, no judgment shall be revived unless action to revive the same be commenced within ten years after such judgment became dormant.
§ 25-1420.Dormant judgment; revivor; time limitation.
Article 14: Revivor and Survival of Actions · Last amended 1909 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceA dormant judgment may be revived using the same procedure as reviving an action before judgment, but the action to revive it must be commenced within ten years after the judgment became dormant.
Full Text of § 25-1420
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 473, p. 472; Laws 1909, c. 154, § 1, p. 557; R.S.1913, § 8041; C.S.1922, § 8982; C.S.1929, § 20-1420; R.S.1943, § 25-1420.
Plain-English Summary
A judgment can go dormant when it sits unenforced for long enough without action taken to keep it alive. Section 25-1420 lets a dormant judgment be revived, using the same manner already prescribed elsewhere in this Article for reviving actions before judgment — the motion, conditional order, and service procedure described in §§ 25-1405 through 25-1409.
That revival right is not open-ended. The statute sets a firm outer limit: no judgment may be revived unless the action to revive it is commenced within ten years after the judgment became dormant. Once that ten-year window closes, the judgment cannot be revived under this section, regardless of the reason for the delay.
This section closes out Article 14’s treatment of revivor by extending the same procedural toolkit — built throughout the Article primarily around a party’s death — to the separate problem of a judgment that has gone stale from inaction. Section 25-1419 addresses parties dying after judgment but before satisfaction; § 25-1420 addresses the judgment itself becoming dormant, with its own ten-year deadline for bringing it back to life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean for a judgment to become “dormant”?
It refers to a judgment that has gone unenforced for a period without action taken to keep it active, at which point it needs to be revived before further enforcement steps such as execution can proceed.
How is a dormant judgment revived?
In the same manner as reviving an action before judgment — the motion, conditional order, and service procedure described in §§ 25-1405 through 25-1409.
Is there a deadline to revive a dormant judgment?
Yes. The action to revive it must be commenced within ten years after the judgment became dormant, or the judgment may not be revived under this section.
What happens if more than ten years pass without reviving the judgment?
The statute states no judgment shall be revived unless the revival action is commenced within that ten-year period, so a judgment left dormant beyond that window falls outside this section’s revival mechanism.
Does this section apply to a party’s death, like the rest of Article 14?
Not directly. It addresses the judgment becoming dormant through inaction rather than a party dying, though it borrows the same revivor procedure used throughout the Article.
How does this section relate to § 25-1419?
Section 25-1419 covers a party’s death after judgment but before satisfaction. Section 25-1420 covers the separate situation of the judgment itself going dormant, with its own ten-year deadline for reviving it.
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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