Nebraska State Probation officers officially sworn-in October 16, 2019 in the Capitol Rotunda by Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Heavican.

Deb Minardi, State Probation Administrator, addressed the 59 new officers, their families, and fellow probation employees noting that probation’s work is both complex and dynamic and presents a multitude of challenges on any given day in Nebraska, there are over 16,000 adults and over 2,000 juveniles under probation supervision.

Judge Thomas Harmon of the county court in Omaha and Judge Holly Parsley of the county court in Lincoln were awarded the Supreme Court’s highest honors during the annual meeting in La Vista on October 10, 2019.

Harmon was presented the Improvement of Community Relations Award, and Parsley was given the Improvement of the Judicial System Award by Chief Justice Mike Heavican at the Court’s Annual Judicial Dinner. The awards recognize members of the judiciary for meritorious projects and exemplary accomplishments beyond their day-to-day duties as a judge.  

The Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court, Michael J. Heavican, presented Employee Recognition Awards on October 7, 2019, during the Nebraska Judicial Branch eleventh annual recognition event.

An Employee Recognition Committee selected ten individuals and two teams from 57 nominations. Candidates for the awards were nominated by judges, supervisors and colleagues in court and probation offices from across the State. The purpose of the awards program is to recognize Judicial Branch employee dedication, acknowledge exemplary contributions, and encourage employee commitment.

Recognizing Constitution Day, on Monday, September 9, with the Court of Appeals in Seward, NE involved a unique twist: A free continuing legal education event at Concordia University sponsored by the Nebraska State Bar Foundation and designed in conjunction with university faculty. The event focused on “Meyer v. Nebraska” and its ongoing relevance 100 years after the statute at issue was adopted by the Nebraska Legislature.

In an auditorium overflowing with both high school and college students, the Court of Appeals opened their morning session at Concordia college with the case of “In re Interest if Michael R” from Scottsbluff. Court of Appeals judges listened to arguments along with Judge James Stecker, Judge C Jo Peterson, and members of the Seward County Court staff.  Students from the college sat throughout the auditorium, among them were classes from Bellevue West, Seward and Centennial high schools.

The Nebraska State Bar Commission has received the Supreme Court’s approval of its recommendation for admission to the practice of law in the State of Nebraska for those having fulfilled all of the requirements under Rule § 3-117 for admission by examination. A swearing-in ceremony took place September 26th at 10:00 a.m. in the Rotunda of the State Capitol building with the following list of individuals as participating in the ceremony. 

Andrew Jeffrey Almodova

Kelsey Elizabeth Arends

Corey Ayala

Virginia Catherine Barden

Mark William Batt

The Nebraska Office of Public Guardian is announcing the launch of a new ONLINE Guardian/Conservator Education course. This course is designed to help people navigate the process of  guardianship and conservatorship in the courts and at home. Participants learn how to fill out court forms, promote the dignity and autonomy of a ward or protected person, and implement least-restrictive alternatives. The course costs $20 per person.

The Court Improvement Project (CIP) held its tri-annual Children’s Summit on September 11-12, 2019, in Kearney.

During the conference, CIP presented annual awards for judicial excellence, youth/family resiliency and Through the Eyes of the Child team excellence.

Award for Judicial Leadership

On October 1, 2019, the Nebraska State Library staff will be moving to a temporary location at Schmid Law Library on UNL’s East Campus for the duration of Phase 2 of the State Capitol HVAC renovation project. You can visit the Schmid Law Library website for directions and to search their online catalog.

Nebraska Supreme Court Justices will hold oral arguments on the South Sioux City High School campus on November 1, 2019, as part of the Nebraska Supreme Court’s outreach and education programming. (This is a high school program but will be held in the Middle School auditorium.)

Two arguments will be heard on November 1, beginning with an educational program at 10:00 a.m. Court arguments will be followed by an open question and answer session with students. Cases are selected to demonstrate the variety of legal arguments that regularly come into the court system.