The following actions can only be brought within four years: (1) An action for trespass upon real property; (2) an action for taking, detaining or injuring personal property, including actions for the specific recovery of personal property; (3) an action for an injury to the rights of the plaintiff, not arising on contract, and not hereinafter enumerated; and (4) an action for relief on the ground of fraud, but the cause of action in such case shall not be deemed to have accrued until the discovery of the fraud, except as provided in sections 30-2206 and 76-288 to 76-298.
§ 25-207.Actions for trespass, conversion, other torts, and frauds; exceptions.
Article 2: Limitation of Actions · Last amended 1975 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section sets a four-year deadline for actions covering trespass to real property, taking or injuring personal property, other non-contract injuries to the plaintiff’s rights, and fraud, with the fraud claim’s clock starting only when the fraud is discovered.
Full Text of § 25-207
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 12, p. 395; R.S.1913, § 7569; C.S.1922, § 8512; C.S.1929, § 20-207; R.S.1943, § 25-207; Laws 1947, c. 243, § 11, p. 766; Laws 1975, LB 481, § 9.
Plain-English Summary
Four categories of harm share a single four-year window under section 25-207. Trespass upon real property is one. Taking, detaining, or injuring personal property — including a suit to get specific property back — is another. A third catches injuries to the plaintiff’s rights that don’t arise from contract and aren’t separately addressed elsewhere in the chapter, functioning as a mid-level catch-all for tort claims that don’t fit a more specific label.
The fourth category, fraud, gets special treatment on when the clock starts. Rather than running from the date the fraudulent act occurred, the four years doesn’t begin until the fraud is discovered. That discovery rule reflects a basic fact about fraud: the person harmed often has no way of knowing they were deceived until well after the deception happened. A couple of narrow statutory carve-outs elsewhere in the Nebraska statutes (sections 30-2206 and 76-288 to 76-298) address fraud discovery in specific contexts outside this general rule.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to sue for trespass to real property in Nebraska?
Four years after the cause of action accrues, under section 25-207.
What is the deadline for a claim involving stolen or damaged personal property?
Four years, covering actions for taking, detaining, or injuring personal property, including claims seeking the specific recovery of that property.
Is there a general catch-all deadline for other kinds of injury claims?
Section 25-207(3) gives four years for an injury to the plaintiff’s rights not arising on contract and not otherwise addressed elsewhere in the chapter, functioning as a broad tort catch-all.
When does the clock start running on a fraud claim?
Not on the date of the fraudulent act, but on the date the fraud is discovered — the four years runs from discovery, subject to the narrow exceptions noted in sections 30-2206 and 76-288 to 76-298.
Does the discovery rule for fraud apply to every fraud claim in Nebraska?
It applies to fraud claims covered by section 25-207, aside from the specific carve-outs the section itself identifies for other statutory contexts.
How does this section differ from the four-year catch-all in section 25-212?
Section 25-207 names specific categories — trespass, personal property injury, non-contract rights, and fraud — while section 25-212 is a broader four-year catch-all for claims not otherwise addressed anywhere in Chapter 25.
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 trespass statute of limitationsconversion of personal property deadlinefraud discovery rule nebraskafour year tort deadline nebraskawhen does fraud claim clock start