This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
If a court order or judgment has a small clerical error, like a typo or a mistake made by accident, the court can fix it. This might include things like a wrong date, a misspelled name, or a math error that slipped through without anyone catching it. The judge can fix these mistakes on their own, or someone involved in the case can ask for the fix through a motion. The court decides if notice needs to go out to the other side before making the change.
This fix can happen at any time, even years after the original order was made. If a case is being appealed, the mistake can still be corrected, but the timing depends on where the appeal stands. If the appeal has not yet been officially filed with the appeals court, the trial court can fix the error on its own. Once the appeal is officially in progress, the trial court needs permission from the appeals court before making any correction.
This rule only covers small, honest mistakes, not changes to the actual decision or outcome of a case. It exists so that minor errors do not create confusion or problems down the road, without giving anyone a way to reopen or change the real substance of a ruling.
