Opinion ID: 2045627
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Gloria and Tabitha

Text: The Court of Appeals' holding that the December 16, 1994, order regarding Tabitha and Gloria was dispositional, however, was incorrect. Tabitha and Gloria had originally been adjudicated to be within § 43-247(3)(a) in an order on August 23, 1993, and they were placed in the custody of DSS for appropriate placement. Lona did not appeal the August 23, 1993, order. In Federal Land Bank v. McElhose, 222 Neb. 448, 384 N.W.2d 295 (1986), we held that where an order from a court is already in place and a subsequent order merely extends the time for which the previous order is applicable, the subsequent order does not extend the time in which the original order may be appealed. The disposition of Gloria and Tabitha was not changed by the December 16, 1994, order. That order merely extended the orders already in place. The juvenile court had never previously modified its original order as to Gloria and Tabitha in such a way as to permit them to be placed with Lona. Thus, the December 16 order was merely a continuation of the court's original determination that the custody of Gloria and Tabitha should be in DSS, with no provision that placement could be with Lona. As such, the December 16 order was not a final order and was not appealable. Because Lona could not appeal the December 16, 1994, order with respect to Gloria and Tabitha, Lona's appeal in case No. S-94-1240 must be dismissed with respect to Gloria and Tabitha. Because there was no appeal properly pending with respect to Gloria and Tabitha, the juvenile court had jurisdiction to consider the termination of Lona's parental rights regarding these two children.