Short answer. If no appeal or motion for new trial or reconsideration is filed within the time allowed, the judgment is entered by the clerk in the book of entries of judgments, and the date of that entry is deemed the date the judgment became final.
What the law says
If no appeal or motion for new trial or reconsideration is filed within the time provided in these Rules, the judgment or final order shall forthwith be entered by the clerk in the book of entries of judgments. The date of finality of the judgment or final order shall be deemed to be the date of its entry.
Rule 36, Section 2 — Entry of judgments and final orders. Read the full provision →
Silence within the appeal period triggers automatic entry
The rule is triggered by inaction: if no appeal or motion for new trial or reconsideration is filed within the time provided in these Rules, the judgment shall forthwith be entered by the clerk. Nobody has to ask for this to happen — the clerk's duty to record the judgment as final arises automatically once the time to act has simply run out without any response ever filed by either party.
The entry date is the legal date of finality
The rule fixes a precise reference point: the date of finality of the judgment or final order shall be deemed to be the date of its entry. This is the date that matters for counting subsequent deadlines, such as periods to move for execution or to pursue other post-judgment remedies tied to when finality actually occurred.
Relying on any other date — such as the date the decision was rendered or received — can lead to genuinely miscounting a deadline that runs from finality.
The entry carries the essential parts of the judgment and a certification
The record made at this point is not a bare notation. It must contain the dispositive part of the judgment or final order and be signed by the clerk, with a certificate that such judgment or final order has become final and executory. This certified entry becomes the formal proof, on record, that the judgment is now enforceable against the losing party.
Why the entry of judgment matters practically
The entry of judgment is what a party typically points to as proof that a decision is final and can be executed, rather than relying on an informal calculation of when the appeal period should have ended. Anyone preparing to enforce a judgment, or checking whether the time to appeal has genuinely lapsed, should look to whether this formal entry has actually been made, and confirm its recorded date directly with the court.