Any employee of the state, as defined in section 81-8,210, sued in an individual capacity for an act or omission occurring in connection with duties performed on the state's behalf, regardless of whether the employee is also sued in an official capacity, must be served by serving the employee under section 25-508.01 and also by serving the state under section 25-510.02.
§ 25-511.Service on employee of the state.
Article 5: Commencement of Actions and Service of Process · Last amended 2017 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section requires a state employee sued personally over job-related conduct to be served both individually under the standard rules and through the State under the government-service rules, regardless of whether the employee is also sued in an official capacity.
Full Text of § 25-511
Source
Laws 2017, LB204, § 2.
Plain-English Summary
Suing a state employee personally for something they did on the job raises a service question that neither the individual-service rules nor the state-service rules answer alone. Section 25-511 answers it by requiring both. An employee of the state, as defined in section 81-8,210, sued individually for an act or omission connected to duties performed for the state, has to be served under section 25-508.01 (the ordinary individual-service rule) and also served on the state under section 25-510.02, regardless of whether the employee is also named in an official capacity.
The double-service requirement exists because a personal-capacity claim against a state employee can carry consequences for the state — through indemnification, defense obligations, or the state’s own interest in litigation touching its employees’ official duties. Skipping either half of the required service leaves the case exposed to a challenge that service was incomplete.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I sue a state employee personally, do I still have to serve the state?
Yes. Section 25-511 requires service on the employee individually and separate service on the state, even if the employee is not also sued in an official capacity.
How do I serve the state employee part of the claim?
Under section 25-508.01, the same individual-service rule used for any other person.
How do I serve the state under this section?
Under section 25-510.02, which routes state service to the office of the Attorney General.
Does this section apply if the employee is sued only in an official capacity?
This section specifically addresses individual-capacity claims against a state employee for job-connected acts or omissions; official-capacity claims are addressed directly by section 25-510.02.
Who counts as an “employee of the state” for this section?
The definition in section 81-8,210 controls which individuals qualify as state employees for purposes of this service requirement.
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: suing a state employee personally nebraskaservice on state employee individual capacitydouble service state employeenebraska state employee lawsuit serviceofficial capacity vs individual capacity service