Update: The 10 a.m. ET arguments for Nov. 30 have been canceled and will be rescheduled at a later date.
FRANKFORT, Ky., Nov. 9, 2020 – The Supreme Court of Kentucky will convene twice this month to hear oral arguments in family cases on appeal from courts in Calloway, Harrison and Shelby counties. The justices will hear cases Nov. 10 and 30 by videoconference to observe social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The public may watch proceedings via KET’s livestream, as usual. Proceedings are available to watch later on the Supreme Court section of KET’s website.
Visit COVID-19 and the Courts for ongoing updates on how the state court system is handling the pandemic.
The Supreme Court is the state court of last resort and the final interpreter of Kentucky law. Seven justices sit on the Supreme Court and all seven justices rule on appeals that come before the court. The justices are elected from seven appellate districts and serve eight-year terms. A chief justice, chosen for a four-year term by fellow justices, is the administrative head of the state’s court system and is responsible for its operation. The Supreme Court may order a ruling or opinion to be published, which means that the ruling becomes the case law governing all similar cases in the future in Kentucky.
Oral Arguments
- TUESDAY, NOV. 10, 2020 -
10 a.m. EST
2020-SC-0004-DGE
SHAYNE BLACKABY V. NANCY BARNES
View case briefs
Family Law. Grandparent Visitation. KRS 405.021. Issues include whether, under circumstances involving a maternal grandmother’s adoption of a child which was being contested by the father at the time of his death, the Court should extend the stepparent adoption exception carved out in Hicks v. Enlow, 764 S.W.2d 68 (Ky. 1989).
Discretionary Review granted: 4/23/20
Shelby Circuit Court, Judge S. Marie Hellard
Attorney for Appellant: Joseph P. Bowman
Attorney for Appellee: Patrick F. Graney
- MONDAY, NOV. 30, 2020 -
10 a.m. EST
2020-SC-0205-DGE
R.M., ET AL.V. CABINET FOR HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES, COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, ET AL.
View case briefs
Termination of Parental Rights. Issues include evidentiary sufficiency regarding best interests of the children and reasonableness of efforts to reunify the parents with their two sons, born in Romania but in the United States since 2014.
Discretionary Review granted: 9/16/20
Harrison Circuit Court, Judge Heather Fryman
Attorney for Appellants: William J. Verax, IV
Attorneys for Appellees: Leslie M. Laupp, John R. Kleinschmidt, III
1 p.m. EST
2020-SC-0191-DGE, 2020-SC-0192-DGE, 2020-SC-0193-DGE
M.C. V. COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, CABINET FOR HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES, ET AL.
View case briefs
KRS 600.020(1). Abused or Neglected Child. Sufficiency of Evidence. Issues include whether the parent’s consumption of alcohol constituted a risk of abuse and was sufficient evidence to support a finding that the children were abused or neglected under the statute, and whether such consumption warranted removal of the children from the parent’s custody.
Discretionary Review granted: 8/13/20
Calloway Circuit Court, Judge Robert D. Mattingly, Jr.
Attorney for Appellant: Christopher E. Hendricks
Attorneys for Appellees: Whitney S. Jones, Stephanie J. Perlow, Margaret G. Hicks, Casey J. Naber
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