{"data":{"id":"us-ky/kre-902","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRE 902","heading":"Self-authentication","body":"Extrinsic evidence of authenticity as a condition precedent to admissibility is not required\nwith respect to the following:\n(1) Domestic public documents under seal. A document bearing a seal purporting to be\nthat of the United States, or of any state, dis trict, Commonwealth, territory, or\ninsular possession thereof, or the Panama Canal Zone, or the Trust Territory of the\nPacific Islands, or of a political subdivision, department, officer, or agency thereof,\nand a signature purporting to be an attestation or execution.\n(2) Domestic public documents not under seal. A document purporting to bear the\nsignature in the official capacity of an officer or employee of any entity included in\nparagraph (1) of this rule, having no seal, if a public officer having a sea l and\nhaving official duties in the district or political subdivision of the officer or\nemployee certifies under seal that the signer has the official capacity and that the\nsignature is genuine.\n(3) Foreign public documents. A document purporting to be exe cuted, or attested in an\nofficial capacity by a person authorized by the laws of a foreign country to make the\nexecution or attestation, and accompanied by a final certification as to the\ngenuineness of the signature of official position:\n(A) Of the executing or attesting person; or\n(B) Of any foreign official whose certificate of genuineness of signature and\nofficial position relates to the execution or attestation.\nA final certification may be made by a secretary of embassy or legation, consul\ngeneral, consul, vice consul, or consular agent of the United States, or a diplomatic\nor consular official of the foreign country assigned or accredited to the United\nStates. If reasonable opportunity has been given to all parties to investigate the\nauthenticity and  accuracy of official documents, the court may, for good cause\nshown, order that they be treated as presumptively authentic without final\ncertification or permit them to be evidenced by an attested summary with or without\nfinal certification.\n(4) Official records. An official record or an entry therein, when admissible for any\npurpose, may be evidenced by an official publication thereof or by a copy attested\nby an official having the legal custody of the record. If the office in which the\nrecord is kept is outside the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the attested copy shall be\naccompanied by a certificate that the official attesting to the accuracy of the copy\nhas the authority to do so. The certificate accompanying domestic records (those\nfrom offices within the t erritorial jurisdiction of the United States) may be made by\na judge of a court of record of the district or political subdivision in which the\nrecord is kept, authenticated by the seal of the court, or may be made by any public\nofficer having a seal of of fice and having official duties in the district or political\nsubdivision in which the record is kept, authenticated by the seal of office. The\ncertificate accompanying foreign records (those from offices outside the territorial\njurisdiction of the United S tates) may be made by a secretary of embassy or\nlegation, consul general, consul, vice consul, or consular agent or by any officer in\nthe foreign service of the United States stationed in the foreign state or country in\nwhich the record is kept, and authenticated by the seal of office. A written statement\nprepared by an official having the custody of a record that after diligent search no\nrecord or entry of a specified tenor is found to exist in the records of the office,\ncomplying with the requirements set  out above, is admissible as evidence that the\nrecords of the office contain no such record of entry.\n(5) Official publications. Books, pamphlets, or other publications purporting to be\nissued by public authority.\n(6) Books, newspapers, and periodicals. Pr inted materials purporting to be books,\nnewspapers, or periodicals.\n(7) Trade inscriptions and the like. Inscriptions, signs, tags, or labels purporting to have\nbeen affixed in the course of business and indicating ownership, control, or origin.\n(8) Acknowledged documents. Documents accompanied by a certificate of\nacknowledgement executed in the manner provided by law before a notary public or\nother officer authorized by law to take acknowledgements.\n(9) Commercial paper and related documents. Commercial pa per, signatures thereon,\nand documents relating thereto to the extent provided by the general commercial\nlaw.\n(10) Documents which self -authenticate by the provisions of statutes or other rules of\nevidence. Any signature, document, or other matter which is declared to be\npresumptively genuine by Act of Congress or the General Assembly of Kentucky or\nby rule of the Supreme Court of Kentucky.\n(11) Business records.\n(A) Unless the sources of information or other circumstances indicate lack of\ntrustworthiness, the original or a duplicate of a record of regularly conducted\nactivity within the scope of KRE 803(6) or KRE 803(7 ), which the custodian\nthereof certifies:\n(i) Was made, at or near the time of the occurrence of the matters set\nforth, by (or from information transmitted by) a person with\nknowledge of those matters;\n(ii) Is kept in the course of the regularly conducted activity; and\n(iii) Was made by the regularly conducted activity as a regular practice.\n(B) A record so certified is not self -authenticating under this paragraph unless the\nproponent makes an intention to offer it known to the adverse party and makes\nit av ailable for inspection sufficiently in advance of its offer in evidence to\nprovide the adverse party with a fair opportunity to challenge it.\n(C) As used in this paragraph, \"certifies\" means, with respect to a domestic record,\na written declaration under o ath subject to the penalty of perjury, and, with\nrespect to a foreign record, a written declaration which, if falsely made, would\nsubject the maker to criminal penalty under the laws of that country. The\ncertificate relating to a foreign record must be acc ompanied by a final\ncertification as to the genuineness of the signature and official position:\n(i) Of the individual executing the certificate; or\n(ii) Of any foreign official who certifies the genuineness of signature\nand official position of the executi ng individual or is the last in a\nchain of certificates that collectively certify the genuineness of\nsignature and official position of the executing individual.\nA final certification must be made by a secretary of embassy or legation,\nconsul general, con sul, vice consul, or consular agent or by an officer in the\nforeign service of the United States stationed in the foreign state or country in\nwhich the record is kept, and authenticated by the seal of office.","path":["KENTUCKY RULES OF EVIDENCE ----- Legislative Research Commission Note (7/1/92). Although denominated \"rules,\" the elements of the Kentucky Rules of Evidence were enacted as statutes by the Kentucky General Assembly. See 1990 Ky. Acts ch. 88; 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324. Originally codified as KRS Chapter 422A in 1990, the Kentucky Rules of Evidence were renumbered by the Reviser of Statutes, effective July 1, 1992, pursuant to 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324, sec. 34. By an order dated May 12, 1992, the Kentucky Supreme Court \"adopt[ed] so much of the Kentucky Rules of Evidence as enacted by HB 241 [1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324] as comes within the rule making power of the Court, pursuant to Ky. Const. sec. 116.\""],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=20415","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T21:00:11Z","sha256":"416e62aab79d0fc59599a985587fa43c035c12639b643a5b6de9a340e397321d","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/kre-901","next":"us-ky/kre-903"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}