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IN RE INTEREST OF KAMILLE C. & KAMIYA C.

Cite as 302 Neb. 226

In re Interest of Kamille C. and Kamiya C., 

children under 18 years of age.

Nateesha B., appellant, v. 

Samuel C., appellee.

___ N.W.2d ___

Filed February 8, 2019. No. S-18-651.

1. Jurisdiction: Appeal and Error. When a jurisdictional question does 

not involve a factual dispute, its determination is a matter of law, which 

requires an appellate court to reach a conclusion independent of the 

decision made by the lower court.

2. Juvenile Courts: Jurisdiction: Statutes. As a statutorily created court 

of limited and special jurisdiction, a juvenile court has only such authority as has been conferred on it by statute.

3. Juvenile Courts: Jurisdiction: Child Custody: Parental Rights. 

During proceedings under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-247(3)(a) (Reissue 

2016), the juvenile court has broad jurisdiction under Neb. Rev. Stat. 

§ 43-284 (Reissue 2016) regarding placement, but its discretion is governed by the parental preference doctrine that holds that in a child custody controversy between a biological parent and one who is neither a 

biological nor adoptive parent, the biological parent has a superior right 

to the custody of the child.

4. Juvenile Courts: Jurisdiction. The juvenile court loses jurisdiction to 

order compliance with dispositional plans once it has terminated jurisdiction over the juvenile and the parties.

5. Juvenile Courts: Statutes: Legislature: Child Custody. In enacting 

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-246.02 (Supp. 2017), authorizing bridge orders, the 

Legislature crafted a solution for temporary continuity when the child is 

no longer in need of the juvenile court’s protection; the juvenile court 

has made, through a dispositional order, a custody determination in the 

child’s best interests; and the juvenile court does not wish to enter a 

domestic relations custody decree under the power granted by Neb. Rev. 

Stat. § 25-2740(3) (Reissue 2016).

Nebraska Supreme Court Online Library

www.nebraska.gov/apps-courts-epub/

02/08/2019 08:08 AM CST
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6. Juvenile Courts: Courts: Jurisdiction: Child Custody. A juvenile 

court can ensure through a bridge order that during the transfer of jurisdiction to the district court for entry of a custody decree, the custody 

arrangement that the juvenile court has found to be in the child’s best 

interests remains in place.

7. Juvenile Courts: Courts: Legislature: Jurisdiction: Child Custody: 

Time. The Legislature, through enacting Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-246.02 

(Supp. 2017), bridged the gap that would otherwise occur between the 

time that the juvenile court terminated its jurisdiction and the district 

court picked up the case, by avoiding a reversion, before district court 

proceedings can be commenced, back to whatever custody arrangement 

controlled before adjudication.

8. Juvenile Courts: Final Orders: Parental Rights. Juvenile court proceedings are special proceedings, and an order in a juvenile special proceeding is final and appealable if it affects a parent’s substantial right to 

raise his or her child.

9. Final Orders: Words and Phrases. A substantial right is an essential 

legal right, not a mere technical right.

10. Final Orders. It is not enough that the right itself be substantial; the 

effect of the order on that right must also be substantial.

11. Final Orders: Appeal and Error. Most fundamentally, an order affects 

a substantial right when the right would be significantly undermined or 

irrevocably lost by postponing appellate review.

12. ____: ____. If the right affected would not be significantly undermined 

by delaying appellate review, then the order falls under the general 

prohibition of immediate appeals from interlocutory orders. This general prohibition operates to avoid piecemeal appeals arising out of the 

same set of operative facts, chaos in trial procedure, and a succession 

of appeals in the same case to secure advisory opinion to govern further 

actions of the trial court.

13. Constitutional Law: Child Custody: Parental Rights: Time. Custody 

is generally considered an essential legal right implicating a parent’s 

fundamental, constitutional right to raise his or her child, but the duration of a court’s order is also relevant to whether an order affects a 

substantial right.

14. Child Custody: Jurisdiction: Intent. A bridge order is designed to preserve the status quo by continuing the placement with the noncustodial 

parent until the matter can be heard in district court, if either of the parties are dissatisfied with the custody decree that the district court enters 

in accordance with the bridge order.

15. Final Orders. An order merely preserving the status quo pending a 

further order is not final.
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16. Jurisdiction: Appeal and Error. Immediate appellate review of a 

bridge order would undermine the rights affected more than it would 

vindicate them.

17. Jurisdiction: Final Orders. A bridge order is not final for purposes of 

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-1902 (Reissue 2016).

Appeal from the Separate Juvenile Court of Lancaster 

County: Linda S. Porter, Judge. Appeal dismissed.

Joy Shiffermiller, of Shiffermiller Law Office, P.C., L.L.O., 

for appellant.

Megan M. Zobel, of Anderson, Creager & Wittstruck, P.C., 

L.L.O., for appellee.

Miller-Lerman, Cassel, Stacy, Funke, Papik, and

Freudenberg, JJ.

Freudenberg, J.

NATURE OF CASE

This appeal involves a “bridge order,” which was created by L.B. 180 in 2017,1

 and is codified in Neb. Rev. Stat. 

§ 43-246.02 (Supp. 2017). Under § 43-246.02(1), a “juvenile 

court may terminate its jurisdiction under subdivision (3)(a) 

of section 43-247 by transferring jurisdiction over the juvenile’s custody, physical care, and visitation to the district court 

through a bridge order,” if certain criteria are met. A bridge 

order solely addresses matters of legal and physical custody 

and parenting time when a juvenile has been placed by the 

juvenile court with a legal parent.2 The bridge order in this 

case was entered after the adjudication of five children under 

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-247(3)(a) (Reissue 2016), who had been 

in the mother’s sole legal and physical custody. Two of those 

children had the same father, with whom they were placed during the ongoing juvenile proceedings. The bridge order gave 

1 2017 Neb. Laws, L.B. 180, § 1 (eff. Aug. 24, 2017).

2 See § 43-246.02(1)(c) and (4).
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the father legal and physical custody, with substantial visitation 

by the mother. The mother contests the bridge order, arguing 

that it was inappropriate under the circumstances, because 

by the time the bridge order was entered, the Department of 

Health and Human Services (DHHS) had conceded that the 

children could safely be placed back in her care and custody. 

Because we determine that bridge orders are not final for purposes of Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-1902 (Reissue 2016), we dismiss 

the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.

BACKGROUND

On July 11, 2017, a petition was filed under § 43-247(3)(a) 

to adjudicate Kamille C. and Kamiya C., as well as three 

siblings who are not the subject of this appeal. The children 

resided with their mother, Nateesha B. In a prior proceeding, 

Samuel C. had been determined to be the biological father of 

Kamille and Kamiya and had been ordered to pay child support. The petition alleged that Nateesha had been found in 

possession of controlled substances after a traffic stop. Kamille 

and Kamiya were 5 years old at the time.

On July 13, 2017, the juvenile court issued an ex parte 

order of temporary emergency custody of all five children with 

DHHS, which, after a hearing on July 19, the court ordered to 

be continuing.

Nateesha admitted the allegations in the petition, and the 

children were adjudicated on October 6, 2017. The court 

ordered that Kamille and Kamiya be physically placed in 

Samuel’s home and that Nateesha be allowed to exercise reasonable rights of supervised parenting time. Samuel’s child 

support payments were suspended during this time.

The dispositional order was issued on November 21, 2017. 

The court ordered that Kamille and Kamiya, as well as the 

other adjudicated children, remain in the temporary legal custody of DHHS, while Nateesha worked on a permanency plan 

for reunification. Kamille and Kamiya’s placement was to continue with Samuel.
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At a dispositional review hearing on January 10, 2018, the 

court ruled that the children should remain in the temporary 

legal custody of DHHS and that Kamille and Kamiya should 

remain in their placement with Samuel.

On April 24, 2018, pursuant to a motion by DHHS, the 

court ordered the placement change of one of Kamille and 

Kamiya’s siblings from foster care back into Nateesha’s home, 

subject to further hearing at the request of any party. In the 

affidavit in support of the motion, DHHS noted that it had also 

requested that another sibling be placed back with Nateesha, 

but that a hearing on the request had not yet been held. A 

DHHS specialist averred that Nateesha had regularly complied 

with the permanency plan by submitting to drug testing and 

being negative for any and all substances during the prior 2 

months. Additionally, Nateesha had been following the guidelines of her outpatient treatment and was doing well. The 

DHHS specialist described Nateesha as providing a “safe and 

stable home.”

There are no further orders regarding Kamille and Kamiya’s 

siblings in the appellate record.

Samuel moved for a bridge order under § 43-246.02, which 

would close the juvenile case as to Kamille and Kamiya and 

transfer jurisdiction over their physical care, custody, and parenting time to the district court. The motion alleged that the 

children were safely placed with Samuel, that there was not 

a district court order for custody in place, that there were no 

other related pending cases before the juvenile court, and that 

the juvenile court could safely close the juvenile case as to 

Kamille and Kamiya once orders for custody, physical care, 

and parenting time were in place.

The court held a hearing on May 24, 2018, on Samuel’s 

motion for a bridge order. According to testimony at the 

hearing, approximately 1 month prior, Nateesha had begun 

having unsupervised visitation with Kamille and Kamiya, 

with periodic drop-ins, on two week nights a week. She had 

begun having unsupervised visitation on the weekends, with 
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periodic drop-ins, approximately 2 weeks prior to the hearing. 

Transportation for visitation was provided by DHHS.

Evidence submitted at the hearing demonstrated that by 

March 2018, Nateesha’s home was considered to be safe and 

drug free. However, a child and family services specialist with 

DHHS who was assigned to Kamille and Kamiya’s case testified that she believed it was in the children’s best interests for 

Samuel to have the legal and physical custody of the children, 

with visitation rights for Nateesha. The specialist testified that 

the children had been living with Samuel full time for approximately 1 year and had adjusted well and formed a strong bond 

with Samuel.

On May 29, 2018, the court issued, as to Kamille and 

Kamiya, a bridge order and an attached parenting plan. The 

court found that it was in Kamille and Kamiya’s best interests 

to have their legal and physical custody with Samuel and that 

the juvenile court’s jurisdiction over Kamille and Kamiya be 

transferred to the district court. The parenting plan provided 

that Samuel have primacy in the choices regarding Kamille and 

Kamiya’s education, religious upbringing, and medical needs. 

Nateesha was to have visitation with Kamille and Kamiya 

every Tuesday commencing at 4:30 p.m. and concluding at 

7:30 p.m., every Wednesday commencing at 4 p.m. and concluding at 7:30 p.m., and every Friday commencing at 4:30 

p.m. and concluding Sunday at 10 a.m.

The court scheduled the next dispositional review hearing 

for the other three adjudicated children on August 6, 2018.

Nateesha appeals from the bridge order.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR

Nateesha assigns, summarized, that the juvenile court erred 

by (1) denying her due process right to an impartial decisionmaker by adducing evidence and thereby acting as an advocate 

for one of the parties, (2) receiving into evidence a report of 

the Foster Care Review Board over her hearsay objection, (3) 

finding that the bridge order was necessary, and (4) finding 
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that the best interests of the children would be served by placing legal and physical custody with Samuel.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

[1] When a jurisdictional question does not involve a factual 

dispute, its determination is a matter of law, which requires an 

appellate court to reach a conclusion independent of the decision made by the lower court.3

ANALYSIS

This appeal involves a “bridge order” entered pursuant to 

§ 43-246.02, which was enacted through L.B. 180 in 2017. 

Specifically, Nateesha challenges the domestic relations custody determination made in the bridge order in this appeal.

Before L.B. 180, there was no provision in the law for 

bridge orders. This is the first time we have addressed a bridge 

order under the newly enacted statute. A bridge order is part 

of the juvenile code governing the juvenile court, but was 

designed as a “bridge” between juvenile courts and district 

courts.4 The unique nature of a bridge order raises the question 

of whether it is final under § 25-1902. In a juvenile case, as 

in any other appeal, before reaching the legal issues presented 

for review, it is the duty of an appellate court to determine 

whether it has jurisdiction over the matter before it.5 For an 

appellate court to acquire jurisdiction of an appeal, there must 

be a judgment or final order entered by the court from which 

the appeal is taken.6

To understand whether a bridge order is final, we must 

understand what, precisely, it does. We must, therefore, examine the respective roles of juvenile and district courts and the 

newly enacted statutory scheme.

3 Tilson v. Tilson, 299 Neb. 64, 907 N.W.2d 31 (2018).

4 See Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 43-245 to 43-2,129 (Reissue 2016 & Cum. Supp. 

2018).

5 In re Interest of Octavio B. et al., 290 Neb. 589, 861 N.W.2d 415 (2015).

6 Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-1911 (Reissue 2016).
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[2] Pursuant to Neb. Const. art. V, § 27, the juvenile court 

is a statutorily created tribunal established by the Legislature 

“with such . . . powers as the Legislature may provide.” Each 

county, depending on its population, has either a separate juvenile court or a county court with authority to sit as a juvenile 

court.7 As a statutorily created court of limited and special 

jurisdiction, a juvenile court has only such authority as has 

been conferred on it by statute.8

[3] Section 43-247 gives the juvenile court jurisdiction as 

to any juvenile defined in subdivision (3) of that section. The 

dual purpose of proceedings brought under § 43-247(3)(a), 

which alleges that the juvenile is homeless, destitute, or without proper support through no fault of the parent, guardian, 

or custodian, is to protect the welfare of the child and to 

safeguard the parent’s right to properly raise his or her own 

child.9 During proceedings under § 43-247(3)(a), the juvenile 

court has broad jurisdiction under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-284 

(Reissue 2016) regarding placement, but its discretion is governed by the parental preference doctrine that holds that 

in a child custody controversy between a biological parent 

and one who is neither a biological nor adoptive parent, the 

biological parent has a superior right to the custody of the 

child.10 The juvenile court’s authority and duty thus includes 

“to make reasonable efforts to preserve and reunify the family 

if required under section 43-283.01,”11 as well as “[t]o promote adoption, guardianship, or other permanent arrangements 

7 See § 43-2,111 and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 24-517(10) (Reissue 2016).

8 In re Interest of Jaden H., 263 Neb. 129, 638 N.W.2d 867 (2002).

9 In re Interest of Constance G., 247 Neb. 629, 529 N.W.2d 534 (1995).

10 See, In re Interest of Amber G. et. al., 250 Neb. 973, 554 N.W.2d 142 

(1996), disapproved on other grounds, In re Interest of Lilly S. & Vincent 

S., 298 Neb. 306, 903 N.W.2d 651 (2017); In re Interest of Stephanie H. et 

al., 10 Neb. App. 908, 639 N.W.2d 668 (2002).

11 Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-246(5) (Reissue 2016).
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for children in the custody of [DHHS] who are unable to 

return home.”12

The district court traditionally determines custody matters 

as between unmarried parents when juvenile services are not 

required.13 In such cases, the parental preference doctrine is 

not implicated, because there is no controversy between a 

biological parent and one who is neither a biological nor adoptive parent.

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-245(12) (Reissue 2016) provides in part: 

“Nothing in the Nebraska Juvenile Code shall be construed to 

deprive the district courts of their habeas corpus, common-law, 

or chancery jurisdiction or the county courts and district courts 

of jurisdiction of domestic relations matters as defined in section 25-2740.” Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-2740(1)(a) (Reissue 2016) 

includes “custody” within the definition of the term “[d]omestic relations matters.” Thus, up until amendments passed by the 

Legislature in 2008, domestic relations custody determinations 

between two parents were not within the scope of the juvenile 

court’s jurisdiction under § 43-247(3)(a). They were matters 

exclusively under the jurisdiction of the district court.

At the same time, district courts were discouraged from 

making custody or visitation determinations while a juvenile 

court was exercising its jurisdiction over a child.14 For example, in Ponseigo v. Mary W.,

15 we affirmed the district court’s 

refusal to consider a petition for grandparent visitation while 

a case involving the juvenile’s adjudication under § 43-247(3) 

continued in juvenile court. We noted the relative specificity of 

the relevant statutes as well as the need to avoid the possibility 

of conflicting orders from different courts.16

12 § 43-246(6).

13 See In re Interest of Ethan M., 18 Neb. App. 63, 774 N.W.2d 766 (2009).

14 Compare Ponseigo v. Mary W., 267 Neb. 72, 672 N.W.2d 36 (2003), with 

Schleuter v. McCuiston, 203 Neb. 101, 277 N.W.2d 667 (1979).

15 Ponseigo v. Mary W., supra note 14.

16 See id.
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As explained by the Nebraska Court of Appeals in In re 

Interest of Ethan M.,

17 through amendments to § 25-2740(3) 

in 2008, the Legislature expanded the juvenile court’s subject matter jurisdiction so that it could enter domestic relations custody orders for children over whom the juvenile 

court already had jurisdiction for another purpose. Section 

25-2740(3) refers to subsection (2), which describes domestic 

relations matters that shall be filed with the district court, 

and states that “a county court or separate juvenile court 

which already has jurisdiction over the child whose paternity 

or custody is to be determined has jurisdiction over such 

paternity or custody determination.” Before the 2008 amendments, this language referred only to paternity determinations. 

The express intent of the amendments was to remedy the 

problem that arose because the juvenile court lacked jurisdiction over domestic relations custody determinations and 

the district court would not make domestic relations custody 

determinations over a child while under the juvenile court’s 

jurisdiction.18

However, the procedures for making domestic relations custody determinations were not changed by the 2008 amendments and needed to be followed by the juvenile court in order 

to make a custody determination as between two parents.19

These procedures differ depending upon whether there is a 

prior custody decree, but include the filing of a petition or a 

complaint20 and the development of a parenting plan as provided in the Parenting Act.21

[4] In In re Interest of Ethan M., the Court of Appeals noted 

that when the juvenile court does not enter a final custody 

order under the appropriate procedures for domestic relations 

17 In re Interest of Ethan M., supra note 13.

18 See id. See, also, Ponseigo v. Mary W., supra note 14.

19 See In re Interest of Ethan M., supra note 13.

20 See § 25-2740(2).

21 See Neb. Rev. Stat. § 42-364 (Reissue 2016).
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matters, but merely enters a dispositional order placing the 

child with the noncustodial parent, such order can no longer 

be enforced once the court terminates its jurisdiction over the 

juvenile case.22 Under § 43-247(12), the juvenile court retains 

jurisdiction as to any individual adjudicated under various 

subsections, including subsection (3)(a), only “until the individual reaches the age of majority or the court otherwise discharges the individual from its jurisdiction.” Thus, the juvenile 

court loses jurisdiction to order compliance with dispositional 

plans once it has terminated jurisdiction over the juvenile and 

the parties.23

One of the reasons the juvenile court may terminate its jurisdiction over a juvenile is that the child is no longer in need 

of protection.24 And § 43-246.02(1)(d) indicates that a bridge 

order is appropriate only when the juvenile case can safely be 

closed. Section 43-246.02(1)(d) states that one of the necessary criteria for a bridge order is that the juvenile court has 

determined “its jurisdiction under subdivision (3)(a) of section 

43-247 should properly end once orders for custody, physical 

care, and visitation are entered by the district court.” Section 

43-246.02(3)(a) provides that any motion for a bridge order 

shall allege that “the juvenile court action filed under subdivision (3)(a) of section 43-247 may safely be closed once orders 

for custody, physical care, and visitation have been entered by 

the district court.” The Introducer’s Statement of Intent was to 

authorize the creation of “‘Bridge Orders’ to transfer a case 

from juvenile court to district court when a noncustodial parent 

has been deemed fit to safely care for a child, and close the 

unnecessary juvenile case.”25

22 See id.

23 See In re Interest of Lisa V., 3 Neb. App. 559, 529 N.W.2d 805 (1995).

24 In Interest of Amanda H., 4 Neb. App. 293, 542 N.W.2d 79 (1996).

25 Introducer’s Statement of Intent, L.B. 180, Judiciary Committee, 105th 

Leg., 1st Sess. (Jan. 26, 2017).
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A bridge order “shall only address matters of legal and 

physical custody and parenting time,”26 but it is not a domestic 

relations custody decree. As such, the procedural requirements 

leading up to the bridge order of custody are significantly less 

onerous than for a domestic relations custody decree under 

§ 25-2740(3). The Legislature noted in enacting L.B. 180 that 

juvenile courts do not always have the time on their dockets to 

determine domestic relations custody matters.27 Accordingly, 

§ 43-246.02(4) specifically states that “[t]he Parenting Act 

shall not apply to the entry of the bridge order in juvenile 

or district court” and that “[n]o mediation or specialized 

alternative dispute resolution under section 42-364 shall be 

required . . . .”

[5] In enacting § 43-246.02, authorizing bridge orders, the 

Legislature crafted a solution for temporary continuity when 

the child is no longer in need of the juvenile court’s protection; the juvenile court has made, through a dispositional order, 

a custody determination in the child’s best interests; and the 

juvenile court does not wish to enter a domestic relations custody decree under the power granted by § 25-2740(3). Such 

custody decree is instead entered by the district court after 

the transfer of jurisdiction over the child from juvenile court 

to district court, which transfer is inherent to the bridge order. 

Section 43-246.02(1) states that “[a] juvenile court may terminate its jurisdiction under subdivision (3)(a) of section 43-247 

by transferring jurisdiction over the juvenile’s custody, physical care, and visitation to the district court through a bridge 

order . . . .” Section 43-246.02(5) states that “[u]pon transferring jurisdiction from a juvenile court to a district court, the 

clerk of the district court shall docket the case under either 

a new docket or any previous docket establishing custody or 

paternity of a child.”

26 § 43-246.02(4).

27 Judiciary Committee Hearing, L.B. 180, 105th Leg., 1st Sess. 79 (Jan. 26, 

2017).
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Upon transfer, the district court shall “give full force and 

effect to the juvenile court bridge order as to custody and 

parenting time.”28 However, either party may “file a petition 

in district court for modification of the bridge order” and, if 

filed within 1 year after the filing date of the bridge order, 

“the party requesting modification shall not be required to 

demonstrate a substantial change of circumstance but instead 

shall demonstrate that such modification is in the best interests 

of the child.”29 In such modification proceedings, the statutory 

scheme requires no deference to the juvenile court’s judgment 

of the child’s best interests. Further, § 43-246.02(6) now provides that “[t]he transfer of jurisdiction shall not result in new 

filing fees and other court costs being assessed against the 

parties.”30 In other words, the custody determination made by 

the juvenile court has no legally preclusive effect and will be 

made anew by the district court if either parent is discontent 

with the custody arrangement originally set forth by the bridge 

order. And § 43-246.02(6) ensures that there will be no new 

filing costs when seeking what in effect is a de novo review of 

the best interests of the child.

[6,7] To summarize the statutory scheme, a bridge order is 

a tool for juvenile courts to temporarily ensure continuity for 

the child without endeavoring to issue a final custody decree. 

A juvenile court can ensure through a bridge order that during 

the transfer of jurisdiction to the district court for entry of a 

custody decree, the custody arrangement that the juvenile court 

has found to be in the child’s best interests remains in place. 

The Legislature, through enacting § 43-246.02, bridged the gap 

that would otherwise occur between the time that the juvenile 

court terminated its jurisdiction and the district court picked 

up the case, by avoiding a reversion, before district court 

28 § 43-246.02(6) (now found at § 43-246.02(7) (Cum. Supp. 2018)).

29 § 43-246.02(8) (now found at § 43-246.02(9) (Cum. Supp. 2018)).

30 See 2018 Neb. Laws, L.B. 708, § 1 (eff. July 19, 2018).
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proceedings can be commenced, back to whatever custody 

arrangement controlled before adjudication.

[8-10] The unique nature of the bridge order does not place 

it squarely within our final order jurisprudence. Juvenile court 

proceedings are special proceedings, and an order in a juvenile 

special proceeding is final and appealable if it affects a parent’s 

substantial right to raise his or her child.31 A substantial right 

is an essential legal right, not a mere technical right.32 It is 

not enough that the right itself be substantial; the effect of the 

order on that right must also be substantial.33

[11,12] “Most fundamentally, an order affects a substantial 

right when the right would be significantly undermined or 

irrevocably lost by postponing appellate review.”34 If the right 

affected would not be significantly undermined by delaying 

appellate review, then the order falls under the general prohibition of immediate appeals from interlocutory orders. This 

general prohibition operates to avoid piecemeal appeals arising 

out of the same set of operative facts, chaos in trial procedure, 

and a succession of appeals in the same case to secure advisory 

opinion to govern further actions of the trial court.35

As stated, a bridge order is an order transferring jurisdiction 

over the child from the juvenile court to the district court. We 

held in In re Interest of Sandrino T.36 that the transfer from 

juvenile court to county court of juvenile cases brought under 

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-246.01 (Reissue 2016) was not a final 

order. We held that the court in which the case would proceed 

31 Id.

32 In re Estate of Abbott-Ochsner, 299 Neb. 596, 910 N.W.2d 504 (2018).

33 Id.

34 Tilson v. Tilson, supra note 3, 299 Neb. at 71, 907 N.W.2d at 37.

35 See In re Adoption of Madysen S. et al., 293 Neb. 646, 879 N.W.2d 34 

(2016).

36 Compare, e.g., In re Interest of Sandrino T., 295 Neb. 270, 888 N.W.2d 

371 (2016), with In re Interest of L.P. and R.P., 240 Neb. 112, 480 N.W.2d 

421 (1992).
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for the delinquency proceedings was a mere technical right and 

not a substantial right and that the right affected by the transfer 

order could be effectively vindicated in an appeal at the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.37

[13] A bridge order does more than simply transfer the case 

to district court. It orders a change in custody as between two 

parents. Still, such order is merely temporary until given “full 

force and effect”38 by the district court, and it has no legally 

preclusive effect in the event that either parent wishes to challenge it in district court. Custody is generally considered an 

essential legal right implicating a parent’s fundamental, constitutional right to raise his or her child, but the duration of 

a court’s order is also relevant to whether an order affects a 

substantial right.39

We have held that certain orders affecting custody or other 

parental rights had a substantial effect on those rights and 

were, therefore, final, despite being of limited duration. Such 

cases generally involve either (1) a change in permanency plan 

or (2) orders of substantial or uncertain duration.40 Further, 

such cases involve the State’s taking significant parenting 

contact or parental prerogatives away from a parent and, thus, 

implicate the parental preference doctrine.41 In contrast, in 

37 In re Interest of Sandrino T., supra note 36.

38 § 43-246.02(6) (now found at § 43-246.02(7) (Cum. Supp. 2018)).

39 See In re Interest of Karlie D., 283 Neb. 581, 811 N.W.2d 214 (2012).

40 See, In re Interest of LeVanta S., 295 Neb. 151, 887 N.W.2d 502 (2016); 

In re Interest of Octavio B. et al., supra note 5; In re Interest of Mya C. 

& Sunday C., 286 Neb. 1008, 840 N.W.2d 493 (2013). See, also, In re 

Interest of Karlie D., supra note 39.

41 Compare In re Interest of Becka P. et al., 296 Neb. 365, 894 N.W.2d 247 

(2017), and In Interest of Loomis, 195 Neb. 552, 239 N.W.2d 266 (1976), 

with In re Interest of Danaisha W. et al., 287 Neb. 27, 840 N.W.2d 533 

(2013), In re Interest of Borius H. et al., 251 Neb. 397, 558 N.W.2d 31 

(1997), and In re Interest of Stephanie H. et al., supra note 10. But see In 

re Interest of Jaydon W. & Ethan W., 25 Neb. App. 562, 909 N.W.2d 385 

(2018).
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several other juvenile court cases, we have found that orders 

temporarily affecting a parent’s custodial, visitation, or educational rights were not final. This has generally been when it 

was clear that the orders will be for a very limited duration.42

Despite the importance of the rights affected, we held that such 

orders of limited duration failed to have a substantial effect on 

those rights.43

The temporary custody orders that we have held to be final 

are distinguishable from bridge orders inasmuch as bridge 

orders do not change the requirements for reunification and 

they are not orders determining a child custody controversy 

between a biological parent and one who is neither a biological nor adoptive parent. The constitutional right at issue in a 

domestic relations custody decree is usually the right of visitation.44 And, when the custody-related rights have been affected 

by orders entered in the context of domestic relations between 

two parents, such orders have been held not to be final, and 

thus not immediately appealable, when the court has yet to 

decide pending matters such as child support.45 Even an order 

depriving a parent of all visitation in an underlying custody 

dispute between two parents has been held not to be final, 

when the order was temporary.46 We have implicitly determined 

that the parent’s rights affected by the order can be effectively 

vindicated even when the parent must wait to appeal until all 

pending matters are resolved.

42 See, In re Interest of Danaisha W. et al., supra note 41; In re Interest of 

R.R., 239 Neb. 250, 475 N.W.2d 518 (1991); Gerber v. Gerber, 218 Neb. 

228, 353 N.W.2d 4 (1984); In re Interest of Angeleah M. & Ava M., 23 

Neb. App. 324, 871 N.W.2d 49 (2015), disapproved on other grounds, In 

re Estate of Abbott-Ochsner, supra note 32; In re Interest of Nathaniel P., 

22 Neb. App. 46, 846 N.W.2d 681 (2014).

43 Tilson v. Tilson, supra note 3.

44 See Koch v. Koch, 219 Neb. 195, 361 N.W.2d 548 (1985).

45 See Schepers v. Schepers, 236 Neb. 406, 461 N.W.2d 413 (1990).

46 See Steven S. v. Mary S., 277 Neb. 124, 760 N.W.2d 28 (2009). See, also,

Tilson v. Tilson, supra note 3.
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Furthermore, in a somewhat different domestic relations 

context of a custody order during military deployment,47 we 

held, in Huskey v. Huskey,

48 that an order changing sole legal 

and physical custody from the mother to the father while 

the mother was deployed for 8 months was not a final order 

because it was temporary. The temporary custody order during 

deployment that was addressed in Huskey is similar to a bridge 

order insofar as it automatically continues to be in effect until 

one of the parties files a motion. Section 43-2929.01(5) provided that upon the return of the military parent from mobilization or deployment, either parent may request a rehearing or 

reinstatement of a prior order. If the temporary order was the 

initial order, the court is required to rehear the matter and make 

a new determination. And if the temporary order was a modification, the court is required to reinstate the original order 

unless the best interests of the child or child support guidelines 

require otherwise. It thus contemplates further action without 

issue preclusion as to the best interests determination made in 

relation to the temporary order. Such an order is considered 

temporary and without a substantial effect on important custody rights.49

[14,15] A bridge order is designed to preserve the status 

quo by continuing the placement with the noncustodial parent until the matter can be heard in district court, if either of 

the parties are dissatisfied with the custody decree that the 

district court enters in accordance with the bridge order. The 

initial placement with Samuel occurred during a dispositional 

order, which would have been final under § 25-1902,50 and 

47 Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-2929.01(4)(a) (Cum. Supp. 2012) (see, currently, 

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-4601 et seq. (Reissue 2016)).

48 Huskey v. Huskey, 289 Neb. 439, 855 N.W.2d 377 (2014). See, also, 

Carmicheal v. Rollins, 280 Neb. 59, 783 N.W.2d 763 (2010).

49 See id.

50 See In re Interest of Karlie D., supra note 39. See, also, In re Interest of 

Tayla R., 17 Neb. App. 595, 767 N.W.2d 127 (2009).
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Nateesha did not appeal that dispositional order. We have said 

in similar contexts that an order merely preserving the status 

quo pending a further order is not final.51

Granted, placement while working toward reunification is not the same as a domestic relations custody order. 

Nevertheless, because Nateesha can immediately move for a 

de novo reevaluation in district court of whether the custody 

decree is in Kamille and Kamiya’s best interests—without a 

showing of a change of circumstances or incurring additional 

filing fees or costs—we ultimately conclude that any rights 

affected by the bridge order would not be significantly undermined or irrevocably lost if not immediately appealable to our 

appellate courts.

We recognize that some things will change due to the 

transfer. If Nateesha moves to modify the custody decree that 

gives full force and effect to the bridge order, she will have 

to demonstrate that the child’s best interests are served by a 

different arrangement and she will no longer have the right to 

appointment of counsel. Still, parties generally do not have a 

right to counsel in domestic relations matters and the provision for modification in district court without demonstrating a change of circumstances operates as a form of review 

that can be accessed more quickly and with less cost than a 

direct appeal.

Even if we were to review the bridge order, such review 

would serve no purpose other than to extend its duration. Any 

determination upon direct review of the juvenile court’s bridge 

order would have little meaning, because under the statutory 

scheme, the best interests determination could be made anew 

by the district court regardless.

[16,17] Immediate appellate review of a bridge order 

would undermine the rights affected more than it would vindicate them. The goal of quickly resolving domestic relations 

51 See Tilson v. Tilson, supra note 3.
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custody disputes would be hindered, not assisted, by permitting interlocutory appeals of bridge orders.52 For this reason, we hold that a bridge order is not final for purposes of 

§ 25-1902.

CONCLUSION

Because we lack appellate jurisdiction, the appeal is 

dismissed.

Appeal dismissed.

Heavican, C.J., participating on briefs.

52 See Steven S. v. Mary S., supra note 46.