Knott County Court Dockets Defined
A court docket is a schedule and event log. For Knott County, docket information may show the court, case number, party name, hearing date, event type, judge, charge or case type, and recent action. It helps a person see when a matter is set and what has happened procedurally. It does not always include the full motion, order, evidence, transcript, video recording, or certified document.
The Kentucky trial-court docket portal is the main public route for recent or upcoming trial-court settings. The portal includes a warning that the online docket is not the official court docket and is subject to change. That warning is important in Knott County because missed court dates can affect bonds, fines, license status, or failure-to-appear issues. When a date matters, the docket result should be checked with the Knott County Office of Circuit Court Clerk.
Knott County uses the Kentucky Court of Justice structure. Circuit Court and District Court are different courts, but both local trial-court record paths run through the Circuit Court Clerk in Hindman. Circuit Court dockets tend to involve felony, divorce, larger civil, contested probate, title, appeal, and injunction matters. District Court dockets tend to involve traffic, misdemeanors, violations, ordinances, juvenile matters, probate of wills, small claims, lower-dollar civil cases, felony probable-cause hearings, mental-health matters, and domestic violence matters.
Search Knott County Court Dockets
The fastest docket check is usually online, then phone confirmation if the setting affects travel, bond, payment, or warrant risk. Online access may identify a court date, but it should not be treated as a certified schedule. The Circuit Court Clerk is the local office for court dates, copies, old file location numbers, payment questions, and case-specific details that do not appear online.
- Open the Kentucky Court of Justice trial-court docket portal and look for the county, court, date, or case search options available in the public interface.
- Use the case number, party name, citation data, or date range from the notice, citation, bond paper, or prior docket entry.
- Match the court level to the case type, since Circuit Court and District Court hear different matters in Knott County.
- Read the docket entry for the hearing type, event date, judge, and case number before making travel or payment plans.
- Call the Knott County Circuit Court Clerk at 606-785-5021 when the date is unclear, recently changed, missed, or tied to a bond, bench warrant, or license consequence.
A separate KYeCourts or Find a Case search may provide public case information beyond a single calendar setting. For a document copy, certified record, or full file, the case should move from docket lookup to a clerk request.
Knott County Docket Fields
No public sample Knott County docket entry exposed a full case detail page without login or payment. The field inventory below comes from Kentucky Court of Justice docket and eCourts search material, plus the case-record fields identified for public case data. It reflects what a reader should expect from docket and case-event data, not a promise that every field appears in every online result.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case Number | The court-assigned identifier used to match docket entries to a case file. |
| County | The county of origin, which should be Knott County for local trial matters. |
| Court | Circuit Court, District Court, or another Kentucky Court of Justice level. |
| Case Type | Civil, criminal, traffic, probate, juvenile, domestic, small claims, or another type. |
| Event Date | The date for hearing, arraignment, motion, review, trial, sentencing, or payment event. |
| Event Type | The docket setting, filing, order, motion, disposition, or other case event. |
| Parties | Names such as plaintiff, defendant, Commonwealth, petitioner, respondent, estate, or business party. |
| Judge | The assigned judge or court officer when visible in the docket source. |
| Disposition | The current or final result if the entry reflects a decided charge or claim. |
| Payment Status | Fine, cost, fee, amount due, or payable status when the record is tied to ePay. |
Docket terms have narrow meanings. An arraignment is the formal hearing where charges are presented and a plea is entered. A motion is a request for an order. A disposition is the outcome or current status. A bench warrant is a judge-issued warrant, often tied to failure to appear or contempt. Those words should be read in context before assuming the legal result of a case.
Knott County Courts With Dockets
Knott County is in the 36th Judicial Circuit and the 36th Judicial District. The official Knott County court page lists Circuit Judge Kim Cornett Childers for the 36th Judicial Circuit and District Judge Dennis B. Prater for the 36th Judicial District. Lisa Bolen is the Circuit Court Clerk. The courthouse contact for both local trial-court levels is the Knott County Judicial Center, 53 W. Main St., P.O. Box 1317, Hindman, KY 41822, phone 606-785-5021, fax 606-785-3994, with hours Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
| Court / Office | Docket Role | Knott County Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Circuit Court | Felonies, divorces, larger civil cases, contested probate, title disputes, appeals, and injunction matters. | 36th Judicial Circuit, Judge Kim Cornett Childers. |
| District Court | Traffic, misdemeanors, violations, ordinances, juvenile, probate of wills, small claims, lower-dollar civil, and preliminary felony matters. | 36th Judicial District, District Judge Dennis B. Prater. |
| Circuit Court Clerk | Local docket confirmation, file requests, copies, payments, bonds, and jury scheduling. | Lisa Bolen, 606-785-5021. |
| Appellate Courts | Appeals from Circuit Court or Family Court move to Kentucky appellate courts. | Use C-Track Public Access for state appellate lookup. |
The docket portal is useful, but not every type of record is equally public. Juvenile, mental-health, adoption, sealed, expunged, and protected domestic-violence information can be withheld or redacted even when a public event exists.
Knott County Dockets vs Records
A docket and a full case record serve different needs. A docket helps track what is scheduled and what procedural steps occurred. A full court record can contain the documents behind those steps. For Knott County court records, full file access, certified copies, and older cases require the clerk route even when a docket line can be viewed online.
| Point of Comparison | Docket | Full Case Record |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Event list, calendar entry, or brief case activity line. | Pleadings, motions, orders, judgments, citations, transcripts, exhibits, and reports when available. |
| Best Use | Checking hearing dates, event history, and basic case movement. | Proving what was filed, ordered, sentenced, dismissed, or certified by the court. |
| Access | Often checked online through statewide Kentucky systems. | May require a clerk request, copy fee, certification, or file location number. |
| Limits | Subject to change and not the official docket under the portal disclaimer. | May contain sealed, redacted, restricted, or nonpublic material. |
Traffic dockets show why the difference matters. A District Court traffic docket may show a citation date, plea, disposition, fine, payment event, or failure to appear. A Kentucky driver history record is a separate Kentucky Transportation Cabinet record that can show license status, restrictions, and traffic violations. The Knott County traffic court records route and the driver-record route should not be treated as the same file.
Knott County Docket Access Rules
Kentucky public-record law supplies the general access framework. KRS 61.878 lists exemptions that can keep some records or fields from public release, while KRS 61.880 sets the agency response process for open-records requests. For court case files, though, Kentucky Court of Justice instructions still point requesters back to the clerk of the court that heard the case.
That split matters in Knott County because a docket question may lead to several offices. Court dates, case numbers, failure-to-appear issues, bond conditions, and disposition details go to the Circuit Court Clerk. Sheriff service questions and wanted-person alerts go to the Knott County Sheriff's Office. KYTC driver-history effects go to transportation records. KSP records use the KSP open-records process. The docket is the clue, not always the custodian.
Note: Confirm any urgent court date with the clerk, especially after weather events, flood disruptions, or recent continuance requests.
Dockets, Warrants, and Traffic
Research for Knott County did not locate an official online active-warrant search. That makes docket review and clerk confirmation more important when a case may involve a missed appearance, bond condition, or bench warrant. The warrant access path is a fallback chain: Circuit Court Clerk for court-date and case questions, Sheriff's Office for law-enforcement service questions, and Kentucky ePay for some payable obligations when the matter is eligible.
Traffic cases are handled in District Court. A traffic docket may show citation details, charge, hearing date, plea, fine, costs, payment status, and failure-to-appear entries. If a citation is payable, Kentucky ePay or the official online citation payment portal may help with payment. If the driver wants to contest the citation, payment should not be treated as the right step until the clerk confirms the court date and appearance requirements.
The Kentucky appellate public access portal is separate from local Knott County trial dockets and is used for Court of Appeals and Supreme Court case information.
Appellate lookup is useful only after a case has moved beyond the local trial court path. Routine Knott County hearing checks still start with trial-court docket access and local clerk confirmation.
Confirm Knott County Court Dates
The official confirmation point is the Knott County Office of Circuit Court Clerk. The office is located at the Knott County Judicial Center, 53 W. Main St., P.O. Box 1317, Hindman, KY 41822. Phone is 606-785-5021. Fax is 606-785-3994. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The official court page says users should call ahead to request accessibility assistance.
Knott County Office of Circuit Court Clerk
Clerk: Lisa Bolen
53 W. Main St., P.O. Box 1317
Hindman, KY 41822
606-785-5021
Fax 606-785-3994
Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
Before calling, collect the case number, citation number, party name, birth date if needed for identity matching, and the date shown on the notice or online docket. Ask whether the hearing is still set, whether an appearance is required, whether payment changes the date, and whether a copy of the docket sheet or order is available.