Use this Kentucky court-records page as a starting point for statewide court research, appellate information, local court directories, and related PRC record topics. The layout has been modernized, the old private-ownership banner has been removed, and the page family now includes stronger cross-links to court, criminal, bankruptcy, and expungement resources.
Quick Links
Start here for the fastest path into Kentucky court-record research.
- Online Court Records HubReturn to the nationwide PRC court-records portal and browse all state pages.
- Kentucky Public Records HubMain Kentucky landing page with statewide record topics and related resources.
- Kentucky Criminal RecordsCriminal-history resources and related law-enforcement links for Kentucky.
- Kentucky BankruptcyFederal bankruptcy court resources and filing-related links for Kentucky.
- Kentucky ExpungementsRecord-clearance and expungement guidance for Kentucky.
Official Kentucky Court Resources
Use these statewide and official court resources for case information, court structure, forms, clerk access, or public search tools.
- Kentucky State Court Structure:Official or statewide court resource.
- Kentucky Circuit CourtsTort, contract, real property rights, interstate support and estate. Exclusive civil appeals and miscellaneous civil jurisdiction. Marriage dissolution, support, custody, adoption and miscellaneous domestic relations. Search docket information
- Kentucky Family CourtsDissolution of marriage. Spousal support and equitable distribution. Child custody, support and visitation. Paternity and adoption. One judge, one family, one court
- United States District Court Eastern District of KentuckyGeneral orders, local rules and forms. Jury, judges and attorney information. Court schedule and more
- Kentucky Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of Kentucky is the court of last resort and the final interpreter of state law. Mandatory jurisdiction in certified questions from federal courts and original proceeding cases. Discretionary jurisdiction in civil cases. Search Court opinions
- Kentucky Court of AppealsCases come to the Court of Appeals from a lower court. Child custody and property rights decisions may be appealed. Search court of appeals case dockets by litigants name, attorney or case number
Kentucky Court Directory & Local Resources
Legacy directory content has been retained inside the updated layout so county-level links, clerk references, and older court research notes remain available in one place.
Kentucky State Court Records Search Suggestions
As there may be more one source to obtaining Kentucky criminal, civil and divorce records, it is important to search multiple state courts to find the correct records.
Kentucky State Court Structure:The Kentucky municipal courts have jurisdiction to hear cases involving moving traffic violations, miscellaneous traffic violations, and DWI or DUI matters. It has exclusive jurisdiction to hear cases involving ordinance violations, and parking violations. The Kentucky district courts are the state's trial courts. These courts have jurisdiction to hear cases involving tort, contract, real property rights ($0/$4,000), interstate support, and estate matters. The courts have exclusive mental health, and small claims jurisdiction, where the amount in controversy is $1,500 or less. The district courts have exclusive paternity jurisdiction, jurisdiction over misdemeanor, DWI or DUI, and domestic violence matters. These courts have exclusive traffic or other violation jurisdiction, and exclusive juvenile jurisdiction. District courts hold venue to preliminary hearings. Kentucky circuit courts hear tort, contract, real property rights ($4,000/no maximum), interstate support, and estate matters. These circuit courts have exclusive civil appeals, miscellaneous civil jurisdiction, exclusive marriage dissolution, support/custody, adoption, miscellaneous domestic relations jurisdiction. Circuit courts also have exclusive felony, and criminal appeals jurisdiction. Kentucky's courts of appeal have mandatory jurisdiction in civil, noncapital criminal, and original proceeding cases. These courts have discretionary jurisdiction in civil, noncapital criminal, administrative agency, original proceeding, and interlocutory decision cases. Kentucky's highest court is the supreme court. Kentucky's supreme court has mandatory jurisdiction in capital and other criminal (death, life, 20 yr+ sentence), disciplinary, certified questions from federal courts, and original proceeding cases. The supreme court has discretionary jurisdiction in civil, noncapital criminal, administrative agency, juvenile, original proceeding, and interlocutory decision cases.
Directory of Links and Resources to Access County, State or Federal Court Records Online
Kentucky Civil and Divorce Court Records |
Kentucky Criminal Court Records Felony, misdemeanors and traffic violations. |
Kentucky Court Case Dockets Recent court case filings by county. |
Civil, family law cases and divorces, personal injury cases, lawsuits, estate planning and probate matters.
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Most criminal cases are started when a prosecutor, either a district attorney (who represents a county) or the attorney general (who represents the state), files a complaint with the court.
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Kentucky County Court calendar search of each county across the state of all case types. Adair Allen Anderson Ballard Barren Bath Bell Boone Bourbon Boyd Boyle Bracken Breathitt Breckinridge Bullitt Butler Caldwell Calloway Campbell Carlisle Carroll Carter Casey Christian Clark Clay Clinton Crittenden Cumberland Daviess Edmonson Elliott Estill Fayette Fleming Floyd Franklin Fulton Gallatin Garrard Grant Graves Grayson Green Greenup Hancock Hardin Harlan Harrison Hart Henderson Henry Hickman Hopkins Jackson Jefferson Jessamine Johnson Kenton Knott Knox Larue Laurel Lawrence Lee Leslie Letcher Lewis Lincoln Livingston Logan Lyon Madison Magoffin Marion Marshall Martin Mason McCracken McCreary McLean Meade Menifee Mercer Metcalfe Monroe Montgomery Morgan Muhlenburg Nelson Nicholas Ohio Oldham Owen Owsley Pendleton Perry Pike Powell Pulaski Robertson Rockcastle Rowan Russell Scott Shelby Simpson Spencer Taylor Todd Trigg Trimble Union Warren Washington Wayne Webster Whitley Wolfe Woodford |
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Research Notes
- Search more than one court level.Trial courts, appellate courts, bankruptcy courts, and specialty courts may each hold different parts of a case trail.
- Use the clerk for official copies.Certified documents and official record copies should come directly from the responsible court or clerk office.
- Online access varies by county and court type.Some courts provide full searchable dockets, while others provide only calendars, indexes, or request instructions.
- Cross-check related record categories.Criminal records, judgments and liens, bankruptcy filings, inmate searches, and public-record hubs often help complete a statewide research path.
Related Kentucky Court Topics
Continue into related Kentucky specialty pages and supporting court-research topics.
- Kentucky Criminal RecordsCriminal-history resources, law-enforcement links, and related court research.
- Kentucky BankruptcyBankruptcy court links, forms, and related filing resources.
- Kentucky Judgments & LiensJudgment and lien research links connected to court and records searches.
- Kentucky ExpungementsRecord-clearance and expungement guidance where available.
- Kentucky Inmate SearchCorrectional and inmate-lookup resources related to court and custody research.