White v. White, 296 Neb. 772

Elizabeth White sued for dissolution; the district court appointed James McGough as attorney for the minor children and later ordered the parties to pay his fees.
White did not pay; after bankruptcy discharge, McGough moved under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 42-358(1) to have Douglas County pay his fees, arguing White was indigent.
The district court found White indigent and ordered Douglas County to pay; Douglas County appealed and this court reversed, holding White was not indigent.
After mandate, McGough sought $1,719.87 from Douglas County for fees defending Douglas County’s appeal; the district court ordered the county to pay, relying on Neb. Ct. R. App. P. § 2-109(F).
Douglas County appealed the order requiring it to reimburse McGough for appellate work, arguing lack of statutory authority, procedural defects, and law-of-the-case grounds.

Issue	McGough's Argument	Douglas County's Argument	Held
Whether the district court could order the county to pay McGough’s fees for defending the county’s appeal	Fees for appellate work are compensable and the appointing court may order payment (relying on § 2-109(F) and appointment authority)	No statutory authority permits a county to pay appointed counsel in a civil dissolution when no responsible party is indigent; county lacks power absent statute	Reversed: court had no authority to order county to pay appellate fees where no responsible party was indigent
Whether § 42-358(1) authorizes county payment of appointed counsel’s fees when responsible party is not indigent	§ 42-358 authorizes payment of costs by county for appointed counsel	§ 42-358 allows county payment only if the responsible party is indigent; otherwise no public-fund expenditure authority	Held that § 42-358(1) permits county payment only when a responsible party is indigent

Mathews v. Mathews, 267 Neb. 604 (statutory interpretation standard of review)
Wetovick v. County of Nance, 279 Neb. 773 (attorney fees recoverable only by statute or established procedure)
Garza v. Garza, 288 Neb. 213 (uniform procedure for attorney fees in dissolution cases)
Guenzel-Handlos v. County of Lancaster, 265 Neb. 125 (rules for county expenditure of public funds should be set by Legislature)
Kovarik v. County of Banner, 192 Neb. 816 (limited inherent judicial authority to require county payment in fundamental criminal indigency contexts)
Brackhan v. Brackhan, 3 Neb. App. 143 (county has standing to appeal orders requiring it to pay appointed counsel)
White v. White, 293 Neb. 439 (prior opinion reversing county-payment order where White was not indigent)