What are Kentucky Court Records?

Kentucky covers over 40,00 square miles, making it the 37th largest state per land area. However, its approximately 4.55 million residents make it the 26th most populous state in the United States. The state's court structure features a four-tier system: the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Circuit Court, the Family Court, and the District Court.

Kentucky court records are documents, discs, papers, recordings, or other documentation created, received, or maintained by a court, court agency, or court clerk in connection with a particular court case or cases.

Kentucky court records include the following:

Dockets

Dockets are chronological lists of all the activities that have taken place in a court case. This includes court dates, filings, and orders.

Minutes

This is a summary of what transpired during a court proceeding, including decisions made and orders issued.

Case files

These are collections of all documents related to a specific legal case, such as pleadings, motions, evidence, and court orders.

Orders

These are Official directives issued by the court, instructing specific actions or decisions related to a case.

Judgment

This is the court's final decision in a case, outlining the rights and obligations of the parties involved.

Transcript

A transcript is a verbatim record of everything said during a court proceeding, including testimony, arguments, and rulings.

Types of Court Cases

Kentucky has two general classifications of court cases: criminal and civil.

Civil Cases

Civil cases in Kentucky involve disputes between individuals, businesses, or organizations. Unlike criminal cases, which involve alleged violations of law, civil cases seek to resolve private conflicts through legal remedies. These cases are often resolved through monetary compensation, property division, or injunctions.

Common types of civil cases in Kentucky and their examples include:

Contract disputes: Breach of contract, non-payment, or disagreements over contract terms
Personal injury: Accidents resulting in physical or emotional harm, often leading to claims for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering
Property disputes: Property lines, ownership, and possession conflicts
Family law: Divorce, child custody, child support, and alimony
Probate: Estate administration and will contests

Criminal Cases

Criminal cases in Kentucky involve alleged violations of state laws. The state, represented by the prosecutor, brings a charge or charges against an individual accused of committing a crime. Unlike civil cases, which typically involve disputes between individuals, criminal cases focus on punishing the accused for their actions. If convicted, a defendant in a criminal case may face penalties such as imprisonment, fines, or probation. The burden of proof in a criminal case rests with the prosecution, which must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Common criminal case types in Kentucky and their examples include:

Violent crimes: Murder, manslaughter, assault, robbery, and kidnapping
Property crimes: Burglary, theft, arson, and vandalism
Drug crimes: Possession, distribution, and manufacturing of illegal substances
White-collar crimes: Fraud, embezzlement, and tax evasion
Traffic violations: DUI, reckless driving, and hit-and-run

What Are the Different Courts in Kentucky?

Kentucky operates under a unified court system known as the Kentucky Court of Justice, which oversees the state's judicial operations and administration. The system is structured into several levels: the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Circuit Court (a trial court with general jurisdiction), and the District Court (a trial court with limited jurisdiction). In 2002, a constitutional amendment officially established family courts as part of this system.

The two trial courts in Kentucky, the circuit and district courts, are responsible for hearing cases and issuing judgments based on the facts presented. The size and number of judges in each judicial circuit and district vary according to population and caseload.

The appellate courts, consisting of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals, review judgments from lower courts to determine if errors were made. These courts generally do not consider new evidence and must base their decisions on the information presented during the trial. Citizens are entitled to one appeal per lawsuit as a "matter of right". Any further appeals are at the appellate court's discretion, and the court may not review additional cases.

Supreme Court

Kentucky's Supreme Court is the state's highest court and the final authority on state law. It comprises seven justices, each elected from one of the state's seven appellate districts, serving eight-year terms. The chief justice, chosen by the other justices, serves a four-year term.

The Supreme Court hears appeals from lower courts and issues decisions, known as "opinions", on these cases. Cases brought before the Supreme Court are not retried; instead, attorneys present written briefs and oral arguments on the legal issues for the court to decide. Cases involving the death penalty, life imprisonment, or sentences of 20 years or more go directly to the Supreme Court for review. The court also sets rules for how courts in Kentucky operate and oversees the conduct of judges and attorneys.

Circuit Court

The Kentucky Circuit Court is the general jurisdiction court handling civil cases involving disputes in which the amount in controversy exceeds $5,000, capital offenses, felonies, land disputes, and contested probate cases. It has the authority to issue injunctions, writs of prohibition, and writs of mandamus, as well as hear appeals from District Court and administrative agencies.

Within the circuit court, the family court division has primary jurisdiction over cases such as divorce, child custody, visitation, maintenance and support, property distribution in divorces, adoption, and termination of parental rights. Additionally, the family court shares jurisdiction with the district court over cases involving domestic violence, paternity, interstate family support, child dependency, neglect, abuse, and juvenile status offenses.

A single judge may serve multiple counties within a circuit, and some circuits, depending on population and caseload, may have several judges. Circuit judges are elected to serve eight-year terms.

District Court

The District Court in Kentucky has limited jurisdiction and handles a variety of cases, including juvenile matters, local ordinance violations, misdemeanors, traffic offenses, probate of wills, arraignments, and felony probable cause hearings. Its jurisdiction also covers small claims up to $2,500, civil cases involving $5,000 or less, voluntary and involuntary mental commitments, and domestic violence and abuse cases. District judges serve four-year terms.

Court of Appeals

The Kentucky Court of Appeals handles appeals of the decisions of the state's lower courts. Hence, if a losing party in a district or circuit court case is unsatisfied with the outcome, they may petition the court of appeals to review the correctness of the lower court's decision.

Some cases, like criminal acquittals and divorces, may not be appealed. However, in divorce cases, child custody and property rights decisions may be appealed. The court of appeals does not retry cases but reviews the record from the original trial, with attorneys presenting the legal issues for the court to decide.

The Court of Appeals has 14 judges, with two elected from each of the seven appellate districts. These judges work in panels of three to review and make decisions on cases, with the majority ruling. The panels do not sit permanently in a single location but travel around the state to hear cases.

Family Court

The Family Court assigns a single judge to handle all of a family's legal matters, including divorce, child custody, adoption, termination of parental rights, domestic violence, and cases involving child abuse and neglect. This exclusive focus on family and children's issues ensures that these cases are not delayed by criminal or civil court dockets. As a division of circuit court, family court judges are full-time and possess the same qualifications as judges in other circuit court divisions.

Business Court

Kentucky business courts are dockets created by the state supreme court as an initiative for civil justice reform. It was launched in 2018 but became operational on January 1, 2020, to provide specialized attention for complex commercial cases, improve the efficiency of the court for all litigants, and offer an attractive forum for doing business.

How Many Federal Courts Are in Kentucky?

Kentucky has two federal courts: the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky and the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. The Eastern District of Kentucky covers 67 counties and is headquartered in Lexington, with additional courthouses in Ashland, Covington, Frankfort, London, and Pikeville. The Western District of Kentucky covers 53 counties and is headquartered in Louisville, with additional courthouses in Bowling Green, Owensboro, and Paducah.

Each district court has jurisdiction over both civil and criminal cases. Civil cases might involve disputes over federal laws, constitutional rights, or significant interstate matters. Criminal cases typically involve violations of federal statutes, such as drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and offenses against federal agencies. The federal courts in Kentucky also handle specialized cases, including bankruptcy filings and immigration issues.

Appeals from the two federal district courts in Kentucky are heard at the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

How Many Court Cases Are Filed Each Year in Kentucky?

According to the Kentucky Court of Justice, approximately 90,000 cases flow through Kentucky courtrooms annually. In 2023, a total of 807,998 cases were filed in the state in the following categories:

Circuit civil:	41,228
Circuit criminal:	35,348
Domestic Relations:	61,187
Juvenile:	30,600
District civil:	163,039
District criminal:	309,528
District prepayable:	167,06

How Do I Look Up Court Cases in Kentucky?

The Kentucky judiciary provides different options for persons seeking court case records who are under 15, 15-35, and 36 years old or older.

To obtain court case records up to 15 years old, you must contact the clerk's office where the record was filed. You may contact the district court or circuit court, depending on where the case was filed. If the case was filed in the Kentucky Court of Appeals, contact the clerk of the Kentucky Court of Appeals or call the office of the clerk at (502) 573-7920. For the Supreme Court, contact the clerk of the Supreme Court or call at (502) 564-5444.

The Kentucky Records Center maintains court case records 15-35 years old. You will need the case and locator numbers to request a court case record from the Kentucky Records Center. The case and locator numbers for a record can be requested from the office of the circuit clerk in the county where the case was heard. To access a court record 15-35 years old from the State Records Center, call (502) 564-3617 or submit a records request form to state.records@ky.gov.

For court case records 36 years old or older, call the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives at (502) 564-1787 or email the department at kdla.archives@ky.gov.

The Kentucky Public Court Records provides free access to public case information from Kentucky courts. To search public court records, visit the Kentucky CourtNet portal. The portal allows requesters to perform a search by party or business by providing the county where the case was filed and the case number. When searching the portal by party, you must provide the last name and birth date, the last name and first name, the driver's license number, or Social Security Number (not available to all users).

In addition, the western and eastern federal court districts make their records available to requesters via a visit to the clerk's offices or mail requests.

What Court Records Are Not Available to the Public in Kentucky?

Although the KRS 61.879-KRS 61.884, also known as the Open Records Act, establishes a right of access to public records, including court documents, Kentucky law requires that certain court records be redacted except in specific limited circumstances. This restriction is in place to protect the privacy of concerned parties. Typically, the following court records are confidential and unavailable to the public:

Juvenile Records: Records involving juveniles, particularly those related to delinquency, dependency, neglect, or abuse, are typically sealed and not available to the public.
Adoption Records: Adoption records are confidential and sealed, making them inaccessible to the public. Access to these records is usually only granted through a court order.
Mental Health Commitment Records: Records related to involuntary mental health commitments are not available to the public to protect the privacy of individuals undergoing mental health treatment.
Certain Family Court Records: Some family court records, particularly those involving sensitive matters like domestic violence, child custody, and termination of parental rights, may be restricted from public access
Expunged or Sealed Records: Records of criminal cases expunged or sealed by the court are not available to the public. This includes cases where the defendant was acquitted, charges were dismissed, or an individual has successfully petitioned for expungement.
Other Confidential Documents: Certain documents within a case, such as medical records, financial statements, or other sensitive information, may be sealed by the court and not available for public viewing.