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Neb. Evid. R. 105

Not legal advice. Verify against official sources before relying on this text in any legal matter.

Rule 105 Limited admissibility.

← Previous Rule 104: Preliminary questions; questions of admissibility, generally; relevancy conditioned on fact; hearing of jury; testimony by accused; weight and credibility. Next → Rule 106: Remainder of or related writings or recorded statements; action of judge.

Rule Text

When evidence which is admissible as to one party or for one purpose but not admissible as to another party or for another purpose is admitted, the judge, upon request, shall restrict the evidence to its proper scope and instruct the jury accordingly.

Amendment history: Laws 1975, LB 279, § 5.

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

Sometimes a piece of evidence can be used for one reason but not another, or against one person in a case but not someone else. When this happens, the judge can tell the jury exactly how they are allowed to use that evidence, as long as someone asks for this instruction.

For example, if there are two defendants in a case, a piece of evidence might be fair to use against one of them but not the other. The judge will explain to the jury that they can only think about that evidence when deciding the case against the first defendant, not the second one.

This rule protects people from being unfairly judged based on evidence that does not actually apply to them or to the specific issue at hand. It gives the jury clear boundaries so they use the evidence the right way instead of applying it too broadly. Keep in mind that the judge only gives this instruction if a lawyer or party actually asks for it.

Committee Notes

Because evidence of other acts submitted for a proper purpose may at the same time lead the jury to infer bad character and employ propensity reasoning, the trial court must, if requested by the defendant, instruct the jury to focus only on the proper purpose of the evidence. State v. Oldson, 293 Neb. 718, 884 N.W.2d 10 (2016).

While the giving of a limiting instruction is mandatory when requested, it is within the trial court's discretion whether to give a limiting instruction contemporaneously with the testimony or in the general instructions to the jury. State v. Ryan, 233 Neb. 74, 444 N.W.2d 610 (1989).

View Statute 27-104

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Bluebook Citation

Neb. Evid. R. 105

This Rule Set

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Last updated: September 2026

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