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§ 25-1916.Appeal; supersedeas; cash or bond; effect; undertakings; amount, terms, and conditions; effect of having corporate surety.

Article 19: Appeals and Proceedings in Error · Last amended 2004 · Last verified July 22, 2026

In one sentenceThis section governs the supersedeas bond, government-bond deposit, or cash deposit needed to stay enforcement of a district court judgment during appeal, with formulas that vary by the type of judgment and cap the amount at the lesser of a share of the appellant’s net worth or a dollar ceiling.

Full Text of § 25-1916

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No appeal in any case shall operate as a supersedeas unless the appellant or appellants within thirty days after the entry of such judgment, decree, or final order execute to the adverse party a bond with one or more sureties, make a deposit of United States Government bonds with the clerk, or in lieu thereof make a cash deposit with the clerk for the benefit of the adverse party as follows:
(1) When the judgment, decree, or final order appealed from directs the payment of money, the bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit shall be the lesser of (a) the amount of the judgment, decree, or final order and the taxable court costs in the district court, plus the estimated amount of interest that will accrue on the judgment, decree, or final order between its date and the final determination of the cause in the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court and the estimated amount of the costs of appeal, such estimated interest to accrue and estimated court costs to be determined by the trial court, (b) fifty percent of the appellant's net worth, or (c) fifty million dollars. If an appellee proves by a preponderance of the evidence that an appellant is dissipating or diverting assets outside the ordinary course of business to avoid the payment of a judgment, the court may enter any orders necessary to protect the appellee and require the appellant to provide a bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit up to and including the amount required under subdivision (1)(a) of this section.
Such bond, United States Government bond, or cash deposit shall be conditioned that the appellant or appellants will prosecute such appeal without delay and pay all condemnation money and costs which may be found against him, her, or them on the final determination of the cause in the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court. When a cash deposit is made, United States Government bonds are deposited, or a bond is provided which is written by a corporate surety company authorized to do business within the State of Nebraska and the cash deposit, United States Government bonds, or supersedeas bond is approved by the trial court in which the judgment was rendered and filed in the court, the general lien of the judgment shall be dissolved;
(2) When the judgment, decree, or final order directs the execution of a conveyance or other instrument, the bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit shall be in such sum, not exceeding the lesser of fifty percent of the appellant's net worth or fifty million dollars, as shall be prescribed by the district court, or judge thereof in vacation, conditioned that the appellant or appellants will prosecute such appeal without delay and will abide and perform the judgment or decree rendered or final order which shall be made by the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court in the cause;
(3) When the judgment, decree, or order directs the sale or delivery of possession of real estate, the bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit shall be in such sum, not exceeding the lesser of fifty percent of the appellant's net worth or fifty million dollars, as the court, or judge thereof in vacation, shall prescribe, conditioned that the appellant or appellants will prosecute such appeal without delay, will not during the pendency of such appeal commit or suffer to be committed any waste upon such real estate, and will pay all costs and all rents or damages to such real estate which may accrue during the pendency of such appeal and until the appellee is legally restored thereto; and
(4) When the judgment, decree, or final order dissolves or modifies any order of injunction which has been or hereafter may be granted, the supersedeas bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit shall be in such reasonable sum, not exceeding the lesser of fifty percent of the appellant's net worth or fifty million dollars, as the court or judge thereof in vacation shall prescribe, conditioned that the appellant or appellants will prosecute such appeal without delay and will pay all costs which may be found against him, her, or them on the final determination of the cause in the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court. Such supersedeas bond, deposit of United States Government bonds, or cash deposit shall stay the doing of the act or acts sought to be restrained by the suit and continue such injunction in force until the case is heard and finally determined in the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court. The undertaking given upon the allowance of the injunction shall be and remain in effect until it is finally decided whether or not the injunction ought to have been granted.
The changes made to this section by Laws 2004, LB 1207, shall apply to all cases pending on or filed on or after April 16, 2004.

Source

G.S.1873, c. 57, § 3, p. 716; Laws 1889, c. 26, § 1, p. 371; Laws 1903, c. 126, § 1, p. 632; R.S.1913, § 8189; C.S.1922, § 9141; Laws 1925, c. 68, § 1, p. 227; C.S.1929, § 20-1916; Laws 1939, c. 16, § 1, p. 94; C.S.Supp.,1941, § 20-1916; R.S.1943, § 25-1916; Laws 1971, LB 377, § 1; Laws 1981, LB 42, § 16; Laws 1986, LB 529, § 26; Laws 1991, LB 732, § 56; Laws 1994, LB 899, § 1; Laws 1999, LB 43, § 10; Laws 2004, LB 1207, § 8.

Plain-English Summary

An appeal by itself does not stop a judgment from being enforced — that is what a supersedeas bond is for. Section 25-1916 requires the appellant, within thirty days after entry of the judgment, decree, or final order, to execute a bond with sureties to the adverse party, deposit United States Government bonds with the clerk, or make a cash deposit with the clerk, before the appeal operates as a supersedeas.

For a money judgment, the amount is the lesser of three figures: the judgment plus taxable court costs plus the estimated interest and appeal costs the trial court determines will accrue before the appeal is finally decided; fifty percent of the appellant’s net worth; or fifty million dollars. If an appellee proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the appellant is dissipating or diverting assets outside the ordinary course of business to avoid paying the judgment, the court can enter protective orders and require a bond, government-bond deposit, or cash deposit up to the full amount otherwise calculated. Once an approved cash deposit, government-bond deposit, or corporate-surety bond is filed, the judgment’s general lien is dissolved.

Three other categories of judgment get their own formulas, each capped at the lesser of fifty percent of the appellant’s net worth or fifty million dollars: a judgment directing execution of a conveyance or other instrument, a judgment directing the sale or delivery of possession of real estate, and a judgment dissolving or modifying an injunction. The conveyance category requires the appellant to promise diligent prosecution of the appeal and performance of the ultimate decision; the real estate category adds promises against waste on the property and payment of rents or damages during the appeal; and the injunction category, once posted, keeps the injunction in force until the appeal is finally decided, and the undertaking given when the injunction was first allowed remains in effect until it is finally decided whether the injunction should have been granted at all. A 2004 amendment to this section applies to all cases pending or filed on or after April 16, 2004.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does an appeal automatically stop a judgment from being enforced?

No. Enforcement continues unless the appellant executes a supersedeas bond, deposits United States Government bonds, or makes a cash deposit as this section describes, within thirty days after entry of the judgment.

How is the bond amount calculated for a money judgment?

It is the lesser of the judgment plus costs plus estimated interest and appeal costs, fifty percent of the appellant’s net worth, or fifty million dollars.

Is there a cap on how large the bond can be?

Yes. Every category under this section caps the amount at the lesser of a percentage of the appellant’s net worth and a fifty-million-dollar ceiling.

What happens if the appellant is hiding or moving assets to avoid paying?

If the appellee proves that by a preponderance of the evidence, the court may enter protective orders and require a bond, government-bond deposit, or cash deposit up to the full amount the formula would otherwise produce.

Does posting a supersedeas bond affect the judgment lien?

Yes. Once an approved cash deposit, government-bond deposit, or corporate-surety bond is filed, the judgment’s general lien is dissolved.

What happens to an injunction while the case is on appeal?

If the judgment dissolved or modified an injunction, posting the required undertaking stays that action and keeps the injunction in force until the appeal is finally decided.

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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