Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court, Mike Heavican, presented 28 Employee Recognition Awards to individuals and team members on December 12, 2022, during the Nebraska Judicial Branch’s 14th annual recognition event. The Employee Recognition Committee selected 11 individuals and one team from...

Following two hours of writing and an hour of observing student attorneys argue their case, Perkins County High School student Dayami Ruiz won top honors in the Nebraska High School Mock Trial 2022 News Reporting Competition. Ruiz spent the morning of December 5, 2022, listening to her school’s team...

On November 16, 2022, a reception celebrating the retirement of Judge Robert R. Otte was held at the Lancaster County District Court. The reception was attended by Lancaster County Judges, Probation Officers, Problem-Solving Court team members, and family and friends. Judge Otte was gifted a plaque...

On November 28, 2022, the Sarpy County Reentry Court held a graduation ceremony and celebration at the Sarpy County Courthouse in Papillion. Judge Stefanie Martinez presided over the ceremony. Also in attendance were Sarpy County Attorney Tyler Loontjer and Public Defender Christopher Lathrop The...

Melissa Ireland, Court Education Director, and Jezharela Arteaga, Judicial Branch Education Trainer, dedicate themselves daily to making sure court staff are adequately equipped with the tools needed for their roles. As the State’s JUSTICE trainers, Ireland and Arteaga work closely with staff and...

Nebraska District Court Judge Kimberly Miller Pankonin of Omaha, Nebraska, was invited to sit with the Nebraska Supreme Court on December 1, 2022. Pankonin heard arguments in the case of State of Nebraska v. Karl J. Dailey. She sat in place of Justice John R. Freudenberg, who was recused from the...

Nebraska has fifteen new senators with varying degrees of experience in the legal field. Trial court judges from across the state are poised to add to the new senator’s knowledge base by welcoming them into their courtrooms through the Judicial-Legislative Visit Program, established in 1999. During...

The Lancaster County Adult Drug Court held a graduation ceremony and celebration on November 21, 2022. For the six graduates, the ceremony marks the completion of an intensive program of comprehensive behavioral health treatment, intensive community supervision, and full accountability. Presiding...

The Judicial Branch Annual Report for Fiscal Year July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, is now available online. The report will be presented to the legislature during the Chief Justice’s annual “State of the Judiciary” in January 2023. The report is found in the Publications section of the Judicial...

The Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation would like to express appreciation for the following District Court Clerks and Ex-Officio Clerks of the District Court who have moved, or are moving, to other life adventures. Each has provided dedicated service to the people and courts of...