Background
Tracy L. Ahmad filed a petition and affidavit seeking allowance of a claim against the estate of Robert Dean Mankhey. Her petition also requested attorney fees, stating that she would submit a separate motion and affidavit after the claim was resolved.
The Dakota County Court granted the claim on July 7, 2025, but expressly declined to address attorney fees and allowed Ahmad 14 days to file a fee motion. The personal representative, Noelia Mankhey, appealed before that period expired. The supplemental record showed that Ahmad timely filed a fee motion and affidavit, and that the county court later deferred action on the motion and the representative’s objection pending the appeal.
The Court’s Holding
The Nebraska Supreme Court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. In probate, an order is appealable when it ends a discrete phase of the proceeding. Although the order allowing Ahmad’s claim otherwise would have concluded that phase, the attorney-fee request was part of the same phase because it had been made in the petition.
A pending statutory attorney-fee request prevents a judgment from becoming final and appealable because recoverable attorney fees are generally treated as costs. By deferring action on Ahmad’s fee motion, the county court reserved the issue rather than disposing of it. The allowance-of-claim order therefore remained interlocutory, and the Supreme Court could not reach the merits of the representative’s challenges.
Key Takeaways
- A probate order may be final only if it ends the relevant discrete phase of the estate proceeding.
- A timely pending request for attorney fees can prevent an otherwise dispositive order from becoming appealable.
- Parties should obtain a ruling on a pending fee request before appealing an order resolving the underlying claim.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that finality in probate appeals turns on the entire discrete matter before the county court, including a properly raised fee request. Filing a notice of appeal while that request remains unresolved risks dismissal and delay.