Start My Answer
loading...

Kentucky Court Case Search — Find Your Lawsuit

Dena Standley | October 19, 2022

Dena Standley
Legal Expert, Paralegal
Dena Standley, BA

Dena Standley is a seasoned paralegal with more than 20 years of experience in legal research and writing, having received a certification as a Legal Assistant/Paralegal from Southern Technical College.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Searching for your court case online is like ^^

Summary: Trying to find your court case online in Kentukcy? Keep reading for SoloSuit's guide on Kentucky court case search tools, the state's civil court structure, and how to search for your case online.

Under both the constitution and common law, Kentucky provides its 4.5 million residents with the right to access court records. This southeastern state has a long history of providing open access to its court sessions and documents.

You can get most Kentucky court cases by calling the court clerk on file. Public access to court records and information is also available through the Kentucky courts' website.

Are Kentucky civil court records accessible to the public?

Enacted in 1976 and updated in 1994, the Kentucky Open Records Act ensures that the public has access to records kept by state government agencies. Court documents are public records, and the public can request access to them.

Although court records are open to the public, records made confidential by state statute or ordered sealed by a judge are only available to the parties and their allowed representatives. Juvenile, medical, and confidential records are not open to the public without prior authorization.

Understand the Kentucky civil court structure

In order to find your case online, it's important to understand which court's jurisdiction your case falls under. The Kentucky judicial system is divided into four levels:

  1. Kentucky Supreme Court
  2. Kentucky Court of Appeals
  3. Kentucky Circuit Courts (57 circuits)
  4. Kentucky District Courts (60 judicial districts)

The Supreme Court and Court of Appeals are considered appellate courts. This means that most civil cases do not start in these courts, but if they are appealed from a lower level court, they might make their way into the appellate court's jurisdiction.

Most civil cases are initiated in the Circuit or District Court. In fact, civil cases involving $5,000 or more will usually be filed in the Circuit Court, while any cases involving less than this amount will begin in the District Court.

This court graphic illustrates how the court structure works for civil cases in Kentucky:

Kentucky court structure

How do I locate Kentucky court records?

When trying to access court records in Kentucky, the easiest way to find a case is through Kentucky's statewide court case search tool called KYeCourts. There are several ways to search for court records, including:

Search by party

Use this search method when looking for a specific party in a case. Search by party gives a set of parameters to assist you in finding the case you're looking for and narrowing down the results. Plaintiff and defendant are both considered "primary" parties. You can conduct a search using only your first and last name.

Other identifiers, such as a person's birth date, social security number, or driver's license number, will ‌aid in the retrieval of more qualifying and matching records. The more details you provide to clarify your search, the more likely your results will fulfill your expectations. In addition, Search by Party allows you to conduct statewide searches, filter for active cases, and limit results based on a scheduled event date range.

You must provide at least one of the following combinations when searching:

  • Last name, first name, and date of birth
  • Both your last name and your first name
  • DLN
  • SSN (not available to all users)
  • Event Range and county

Case-based search

You can search by case if you know the case number and the county of origin. To search, you'll need both pieces of information. Please remember case search does not allow for statewide searches.

Citation-based search

If you have the right information, you can search by citation. You'll need the year the citation was written and the control number and type to locate it. To see where the required information is situated, click view example citation.

Search by industry/business

When searching for a business, you'll need the company's name and the county. Because the business name and the party name are not tracked separately, Search by Business is not an exact search. "Starts with" is used in this search logic to find matches. (For example, if you type the Bank into the search box, you'll get results from the Bank of Lexington, Bank of America, etc.).

What happens if I can't find my case information online?

If you can't find court records online, you can go to the courthouse and ask a court clerk to help you locate your case, where the matter will be heard. The Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Circuit Courts, and District Courts make up the Kentucky Courts of Justice. On its website, you will find lists of the addresses of each court. For example, interested parties can go to the Clerk of the Supreme Court's office to request court records from the Supreme Court.

Typically, the Court Clerk replies to court record requests and instructs you on how to fill out the ‌paperwork. Throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Public Court Records givegives free access to public case information. To get information about each Clerk of the Courts, visit the Office of Circuit Court Clerk's website and pick the county in question.

You have the right to search case record files

The Judicial Branch made civil case e-Filing available statewide in 2015. Further, attorneys will be required to file foreclosure and credit card debt collection in Kentucky cases electronically beginning July 1—the Kentucky Supreme Court issued Administrative Order 2022-22 mandating eFiling in these cases.

Respond to a debt lawsuit in Kentucky

If you are being sued for a debt in Kentucky, the first step to winning your case is to respond. In order to respond to a debt lawsuit, you need to file a written Answer with the court and serve whoever is suing you with a copy. In Kentucky, you have 20 days to respond before you lose by default.

SoloSuit can help you draft an Answer in just 15 minutes.

Check out this video to learn more about how to draft an Answer to a debt lawsuit in Kentucky:

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit makes it easy to fight debt collectors.

You can use SoloSuit to respond to a debt lawsuit, to send letters to collectors, and even to settle a debt.

SoloSuit's Answer service is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your Answer. Upon completion, we'll have an attorney review your document and we'll file it for you.

Respond with SoloSuit

"First time getting sued by a debt collector and I was searching all over YouTube and ran across SoloSuit, so I decided to buy their services with their attorney reviewed documentation which cost extra but it was well worth it! SoloSuit sent the documentation to the parties and to the court which saved me time from having to go to court and in a few weeks the case got dismissed!" – James

Get Started

We have answers.
Join our community of over 40,000 people.

You can ask your questions on the SoloSuit forum and the community will help you out. Whether you need help now or are just looking for support, we're here for you.

Ask a Question.

>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate

>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit. (We can help you in all 50 states.)

How to Answer a Summons for debt collection in all 50 states

Here's a list of guides on how to respond to a debt collection lawsuit in each state:

The Ultimate 50 State Guide

Guides on how to resolve debt with every debt collector

Are you being sued by a debt collector? We’re making guides on how to resolve debt with each one.

Resolve your debt with your creditor

Some creditors, banks, and lenders have an internal collections department. If they come after you for a debt, Solosuit can still help you respond and resolve the debt. Here’s a list of guides on how to resolve debt with different creditors.

Settle your medical debt

Having a health challenge is stressful, but dealing medical debt on top of it is overwhelming. Here are some resources on how to manage medical debt.

Guides on arbitration

If the thought of going to court stresses you out, you’re not alone. Many Americans who are sued for credit card debt utilize a Motion to Compel Arbitration to push their case out of court and into arbitration.

Below are some resources on how to use an arbitration clause to your advantage and win a debt lawsuit.

Stop calls from debt collectors

Do you keep getting calls from an unknown number, only to realize that it’s a debt collector on the other line? If you’ve been called by any of the following numbers, chances are you have collectors coming after you, and we’ll tell you how to stop them.

Federal debt collection laws can protect you

Knowing your rights makes it easier to stand up for your rights. Below, we’ve compiled all our articles on federal debt collection laws that protect you from unfair practices.

Get debt relief in your state

We’ve created a specialized guide on how to find debt relief in all 50 states, complete with steps to take to find relief, state-specific resources, and more.

Debt collection laws in all 50 states

Debt collection laws vary by state, so we have compiled a guide to each state’s debt collection laws to make it easier for you to stand up for your rights—no matter where you live.

Statute of limitations on debt state guides

Like all debt collection laws, the statute of limitations on debt varies by state. So, we wrote a guide on each state’s statutes. Check it out below.

Statute of Limitations on Debt Collection by State (Best Guide)

Check the status of your court case

Don’t have time to go to your local courthouse to check the status of your case? We’ve created a guide on how to check the status of your case in every state, complete with online search tools and court directories.

How to stop wage garnishment in your state

Forgot to respond to your debt lawsuit? The judge may have ordered a default judgment against you, and with a default judgment, debt collectors can garnish your wages. Here are our guides on how to stop wage garnishment in all 50 states.

Other wage garnishment resources

How to settle a debt in your state

Debt settlement is one of the most effective ways to resolve a debt and save money. We’ve created a guide on how to settle your debt in all 50 states. Find out how to settle in your state with a simple click and explore other debt settlement resources below.

How to settle with every debt collector

Not sure how to negotiate a debt settlement with a debt collector? We are creating guides to help you know how to start the settlement conversation and increase your chances of coming to an agreement with every debt collector.

Other debt settlement resources

Personal loan and debt relief reviews

We give a factual review of the following debt consolidation, debt settlement, and loan organizations and companies to help you make an informed decision before you take on a debt.

How to repair and improve your credit score

Debt has a big impact on your credit. Below is a list of guides on how to repair and improve your credit, even while managing major debt.

How to resolve student loan debt

Struggling with student debt? SoloSuit’s got you covered. Below are resources on handling student loan debt.

Civil law legal definitions

You can represent yourself in court. Save yourself the time and cost of finding an attorney, and use the following resources to understand legal definitions better and how they may apply to your case.

Get answers to these FAQs on debt collection

How-to debt guides

Learn more with these additional debt resources


Contents