When any case or proceeding in which the record or transcript has been so made up has been finally determined in the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court, the original bill or bills of exceptions shall be by the Clerk of the Supreme Court transmitted to the clerk of the district court from which such case or proceeding was removed. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the district court to preserve such bill or bills of exceptions in the files of the office for a period of ten years from the time of receipt from the Clerk of the Supreme Court. After the lapse of such time, if the record in the district court does not show any unfinished matter pending in the case and upon such notice as the district court may direct, such bill or bills of exceptions may be removed from the files and disposed of in any way that the judge of the district court directs when approval is given by the State Records Administrator pursuant to the Records Management Act.
§ 25-1923.Appeal; original bill of exceptions; return to district court; disposition.
Article 19: Appeals and Proceedings in Error · Last amended 1991 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section requires the Clerk of the Supreme Court to send the original bill of exceptions to the district court once an appeal is decided, obligates the district clerk to keep it on file for ten years, and allows its disposal only with the judge’s direction and the State Records Administrator’s approval.
Full Text of § 25-1923
Source
Laws 1881, c. 28, § 3, p. 205; R.S.1913, § 8196; C.S.1922, § 9148; C.S.1929, § 20-1923; Laws 1941, c. 34, § 1, p. 44; C.S.Supp.,1941, § 20-1923; R.S.1943, § 25-1923; Laws 1969, c. 105, § 7, p. 482; Laws 1991, LB 732, § 59.
Cross References
Records Management Act, see section 84-1220.
Plain-English Summary
Once the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court finally decides a case, the original bill of exceptions does not stay with the appellate court. Section 25-1923 requires the Clerk of the Supreme Court to transmit it back to the clerk of the district court from which the case was removed.
The district court clerk then has a custodial duty: preserve the bill of exceptions in the office files for ten years from the date it comes back from the Clerk of the Supreme Court. Only after that ten-year period passes, and only if the district court’s own record shows no unfinished matter still pending in the case, may the bill of exceptions be pulled from the files. Even then, the district court judge decides how it is disposed of, on whatever notice the judge directs, and the State Records Administrator has to approve the disposal under the Records Management Act.
The section builds in several checkpoints before an old bill of exceptions can be discarded — the ten-year wait, confirmation that nothing in the case remains unresolved, the judge’s directive, and the Records Administrator’s sign-off — rather than leaving disposal to the district clerk’s own judgment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the appellate court keep the original bill of exceptions after deciding the case?
No. Section 25-1923 requires the Clerk of the Supreme Court to send it back to the clerk of the district court from which the case came.
How long must the district court clerk keep the bill of exceptions on file?
Ten years from the date it is received back from the Clerk of the Supreme Court.
Can the bill of exceptions be destroyed as soon as the ten years pass?
Only if the district court’s record shows no unfinished matter pending in the case, and only with direction from the district court judge and approval from the State Records Administrator.
Who has to approve disposing of an old bill of exceptions?
The State Records Administrator, acting under the Records Management Act, along with the direction of the district court judge.
What notice is required before an old bill of exceptions is disposed of?
Whatever notice the district court directs before allowing the removal and disposal.
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: bill of exceptions returned to district courthow long clerk keeps bill of exceptions nebraskadisposing of old court records nebraskarecords management act bill of exceptionsten year retention appellate record nebraska