(a) Failure to appeal to the referring court, by waiver or otherwise, on the approval by the referring court of an associate judge's report does not deprive any party of the right to appeal to or request other relief from a court of appeals or the supreme court.
(b) The date of the signing of an order or judgment by the referring court is the controlling date for the purposes of an appeal to or a request for other relief from a court of appeals or the supreme court.