Almost everyone arrested for DUI in Nebraska walks out believing they have one problem: a court date. They go home, they wait for the hearing, and they figure the license question gets sorted out whenever the criminal case does.
That is not how it works, and the misunderstanding costs people their driving privileges every month.
A Nebraska DUI arrest sets two separate proceedings in motion. One is the criminal case, in court, with a prosecutor and a judge. The other is a civil administrative case run through the Department of Motor Vehicles, aimed only at your license. Nebraska's statute treats administrative license revocation as a civil sanction that proceeds independently — meaning it can take your license regardless of what eventually happens in the criminal case.
And the administrative case moves first. Much faster than the courthouse.
The deadlines, from the statute itself
Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-498.01 sets out the timeline, and the numbers are short:
- Ten days. If you want an administrative license revocation hearing, your petition must be completed and delivered to the department — or postmarked — within ten days after the notice of revocation.
- Fifteen days. The revocation takes effect automatically fifteen days after the date the notice of revocation is mailed.
- Twenty days. If you do petition, the Director conducts the hearing within twenty days after the petition is received.
- Seven days. The Director makes a determination within seven days after the hearing concludes.
Read that first bullet again, because it's the one that ruins people. If you do nothing for ten days, you have given up the hearing. Not lost it. Given it up — by default, while waiting for a court date that hasn't even been set yet. There's no version of "I didn't know" that gets it back.
I'm quoting the statute rather than paraphrasing it for a reason: statutes change, and your own paperwork governs your dates. Check the notice you were given, and count from what it says.
What the hearing actually is
The DMV's own page on ALR hearings describes the format. It isn't a courtroom. The hearing is conducted by recorded teleconference, exhibits are mailed out ahead of time, and a hearing officer — who is an attorney — takes the evidence and recommends a decision, which the Director then issues as the final order. You may hire a lawyer to represent you, at your own expense.
The DMV also spells out what the hearing is about, and it's narrower than most people expect. In a refusal case, the issues include whether the officer had probable cause and whether you in fact refused the chemical test. In a failed-test case, the issue is whether you were operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration of .08 or more. It is not a general referendum on whether you're a good person or whether the whole night was unfair. It's a specific proceeding with specific questions, and the answers turn on the sworn report, the record, and the evidence presented.
That narrowness cuts both ways. It limits what you can argue — and it means the arguments that are available deserve to be made properly, on time, by someone who does this.
Two cases, one set of facts
The two proceedings are legally separate, but they run on the same underlying facts: the stop, the officer's observations, the testing, the paperwork. What gets said and developed in one can matter to the other. That's precisely why handling the license side casually — or skipping it — is a mistake even for someone whose main worry is the criminal charge.
If you're at the beginning of this, I've written about what happens in the first 30 days after a Nebraska DUI arrest, what implied consent and refusing a breath test actually mean, and what the law allows at a checkpoint. And it bears repeating: an arrest is an allegation. Charges are not convictions, and nobody has proven anything against you.
Call before the ten days are gone
The single most valuable thing about a DUI case is time, and this is the deadline people burn without realizing it. My practice is built on being direct with people, preparing thoroughly, and being genuinely willing to litigate — the trial-tested approach my clients describe in their five-star reviews. My firm was voted Best of Omaha in 2025 and again in 2026, and across my practice I've recovered more than $23 million for clients, with a $5.4 million top result.
If you've been arrested for DUI in Nebraska, call me at (402) 378-9208 or reach out here right away. Bring every piece of paper you were handed that night. The license clock is already running.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the DUI license case separate from the criminal case in Nebraska?
- A Nebraska DUI arrest sets two separate proceedings in motion. One is the criminal case, in court, with a prosecutor and a judge. The other is a civil administrative case run through the Department of Motor Vehicles, aimed only at your license.
- What is the deadline to request an administrative license revocation hearing in Nebraska?
- If you want an administrative license revocation hearing, your petition must be completed and delivered to the department — or postmarked — within ten days after the notice of revocation. The revocation takes effect automatically fifteen days after the date the notice of revocation is mailed.
- What happens at a Nebraska ALR hearing?
- It isn't a courtroom. The hearing is conducted by recorded teleconference, exhibits are mailed out ahead of time, and a hearing officer — who is an attorney — takes the evidence and recommends a decision, which the Director then issues as the final order. You may hire a lawyer to represent you, at your own expense.
- What issues does an ALR hearing decide?
- In a refusal case, the issues include whether the officer had probable cause and whether you in fact refused the chemical test. In a failed-test case, the issue is whether you were operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration of .08 or more.
Your Attorney
Frank Younes
Every page on this site is written by Frank Younes, a Nebraska trial attorney with a published record of verdicts and settlements, selection to the National Trial Lawyers Top 100, and a practice that covers every county in Nebraska and Iowa. No case is handed to an associate — the lawyer you read here is the lawyer who works your case.
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