(1) Before a judgment or order may be entered in a trial court it shall be signed by the judge. The clerk, forthwith upon receipt of the signed judgment or order, shall note it in the civil docket as provided by CR 79.01. The notation shall constitute the entry of the judgment or order, which shall become effective at the time of such notation; however, an authorized order for pre-trial adult or juvenile release or detention, or a signed emergency protective order, shall be effective when issued and does not require prior entry in the clerk's office to become effective. The additional notation required by CR 77.04 (2) or by RCr 12.06 (2) shall govern the running of time for appeal under CR 73.02.
Rule 58.Signing and entry of judgments and orders in trial courts.
Current through June 18, 2026 · Last verified July 9, 2026
In one sentenceCR 58 requires a judge's signature before any trial-court judgment or order takes effect, makes the clerk's docket notation under CR 79.01 the moment of entry, exempts certain release and protective orders from that wait, and ties the appeal clock to the notation rules in CR 77.04 and RCr 12.06.
Full Text of Rule 58
(2) In the district court, if more than one judgment is entered on a single page, one signature by the judge following the last judgment on the page will be sufficient compliance with paragraph (1) of this Rule 58. For purposes of Rule 79.05 either the original or a photocopy or comparable duplicate of the signed page on which the judgment appears shall constitute the judgment.
Amendment History
(Amended effective July 1, 1976; amended October 14, 1977, effective January 1, 1978; amended September 22, 1995, effective November 1, 1995.)
Plain-English Summary
Rule 58 marks the moment a judgment or order becomes final and effective in a Kentucky trial court. Before any judgment or order counts, the judge must sign it. Once the clerk receives that signed judgment, the clerk notes it in the civil docket under CR 79.01. That docket notation -- not the judge's signature by itself -- is what constitutes entry of the judgment, and the judgment takes effect at the moment of the notation.
The rule carves out an exception for orders that need to work immediately: an authorized order for pre-trial release or detention (adult or juvenile), and a signed emergency protective order, take effect as soon as they are issued. They do not have to wait for the clerk's docket entry to become effective. For other judgments, the additional notation rules in CR 77.04(2) and RCr 12.06(2) control when the clock starts running on the time to appeal under CR 73.02.
District court gets one shortcut: when several judgments appear on a single page, one judge's signature after the last judgment on that page satisfies the signing requirement for all of them. For the certified-copy purposes described in CR 79.05, either the original signed page or a photocopy or comparable duplicate of it counts as the judgment.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does a judgment become official in a Kentucky trial court?
A judgment or order becomes effective when the clerk notes it in the civil docket after the judge signs it, as required by CR 79.01. That docket notation is the entry of the judgment, and it takes effect at that moment.
Does an emergency protective order have to wait for entry in the clerk's office?
No. A signed emergency protective order, and an authorized pre-trial release or detention order, take effect as soon as they are issued, without prior entry in the clerk's office.
How does entry of judgment affect the deadline to appeal?
The additional notation required by CR 77.04(2) or RCr 12.06(2) governs when the time to appeal under CR 73.02 begins to run.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure (Ky. R. Civ. P. 58). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Kentucky (Ky. Const. § 116). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 9, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: when is a judgment entered in KentuckyCR 58 signing of judgmentjudge signature required for judgmentcivil docket notation entry of judgmenttime to appeal from entry of judgmentemergency protective order effective date