Civil Procedure - Supreme Court Review

Abstract

FIRST PARAGRAPH(S)|In this past term, the Nebraska Supreme Court reaffirmed its strict interpretation of section 25-5301 of the Nebraska statutes which permits Nebraska to assert jurisdiction over a nonresident motorist by service of process on the Secretary of State. Lydick v. Smith, a case of first impression, involved a plaintiff who mailed defendant notice of service on the day before service was actually made on the Secretary. The supreme court held that under section 25-530 service of process failed because the plaintiff did not give the defendant the statutorily required notice of service on the Secretary of State. Accepting the majority rule, the court ruled that "a plaintiff cannot be held to have given notice of service on the Secretary of State before performance of that act." This holding reaffirmed that substantial compliance with section 25-530 is both mandatory and jurisdictional. |In Lydick, the court also rejected the plaintiffs contention that service had been properly made pursuant to section 25-540 of the Nebraska statutes. Under this section "proof of service shall include a receipt signed by the addressee or other evidence of personal delivery to the addressee satisfactory to the court." The plaintiff argued that since the defendant had actual knowledge of the pending suit, sufficient service had been made under section 25-540. Despite the fact that the defendant may have had actual notice, the court held that service under section 25-540 was insufficient because the plaintiff failed to offer any evidence that notice was personally delivered to the defendant...