Rule 11. Appointment of Counsel and Fees.
11.1. The Court will appoint counsel and/or a guardian ad litem for any juvenile or parent determined to be indigent by the Court, and for any other person whenever appointment of counsel would be appropriate as authorized by statute, in the exercise of the Court’s discretion.
11.2. Attorneys willing to serve as court-appointed counsel in juvenile court proceedings shall complete the form entitled “Court Appointment List Request” for the Juvenile Court Administrator annually. The Juvenile Court Administrator shall maintain a current list of all attorneys who will accept appointments in Juvenile Court, provide the same to all judges, and keep the list updated. Any attorney who wishes to be removed from the list may do so upon request to the Juvenile Court Administrator. The list may be examined by the public upon request of the Juvenile Court Administrator.
11.3. Appointments shall be made by the Court using the list described in Rule 11.2 above. The Court is entitled to rely upon its knowledge of an attorney’s qualifications, skill level, and experience in appointing an attorney the Court finds suitable to serve on a particular case.
11.5. Attorneys shall apply for reasonable attorney fees within six (6) months of the date of service. An application for fees submitted outside this timeframe shall comply with Rule 11.6.
11.6. Attorneys wishing to apply for attorney fees that were not timely applied for pursuant to Rule 11.5 shall file a Motion for Attorney Fees pursuant to Rule 11.6. The motion shall be supported by an affidavit setting forth with specificity good cause for approval of payment. Being overburdened by work, forgetting to apply for attorney fees, or failure of staff to properly or timely process billing shall not constitute good cause.
The affidavit shall be filed as a confidential document. The motion and affidavit shall be served on the county attorney pursuant to Nebraska Supreme Court Rule § 6-1704(D). If no objection is filed within ten (10) judicial days, the Court shall rule on the motion or set the matter for hearing.
11.7. Unless the Court finds good cause, counsel shall not be compensated for expenses associated with counsel’s application for payment of attorney fees not timely sought, including, but not limited to, attorney fees, witness fees, and other expenses.