Law Fox

Terms of service

2010-08-31T07:18:00.000-07:00

This is the best written TOS I've seen. Written, edited, compiled, or conjured by or under the supervision of Seth Godin.

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Terms of Service

The following Terms of Service apply to your use of this Network. You are solely responsible for your conduct and your content on the Network and compliance with these terms. By registering with us or using or browsing this Network, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these terms.

You agree that you will not post, email or make available any content or use this Network:
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"Stalk" or otherwise harass anyone;
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You agree not to authorize or encourage any third party to use this Network to facilitate any of the foregoing prohibited conduct. You also agree that these Network Terms of Service inure to the benefit of our service providers (including our Network platform provider) and that they may take action (including the removal of your content and disabling of your account) in order to maintain compliance with these Network Terms of Service. Technology and hosting for aspects of this Network are provided by Ning, Inc., an online service provider ("Service Provider"). However, the Network Creator of this Network controls the content, membership and policy of this Network, including those pages served by the Service Provider on behalf of this Network. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, by participating on this Network you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Service Provider on all matters related to your interaction with others using this Network and participation with this Network.

Notes on Kentucky exemption law

2009-02-18T07:29:00.000-08:00

Kentucky exemption law

See: Kentucky exemption statutes

KRS §427.005 - Definitions.

As used in this chapter:

(1) The term "earnings" means compensation paid or payable for personal services, whether denominated as wages, salary, commission, bonus, or otherwise, and includes periodic payments pursuant to a pension or retirement program.

(2) The term "disposable earnings" means that part of the earnings of any individual remaining after the deduction from those earnings of any amounts required by law to be withheld.

(3) The term "garnishment" means any legal or equitable procedure through which the earnings of any individual are required to be withheld for payment of any debt.

(4) The terms "household furnishings, jewelry, personal clothing, and ornaments" mean clothing, furniture, appliances, linens, china, crockery, kitchenware, and personal effects of an individual and the individual's dependents, but do not include:

(a) Works of art;
(b) Electronic entertainment equipment (except to the extent of one (1) television and one (1) radio);
(c) Antiques; and
(d) Jewelry other than wedding rings.
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The language contained in KRS §427.005(1) through (3) is exactly the same as the language of 15 U.S.C. §1672 (Pub. L. 90-321, title III, Sec. 302, May 29, 1968, 82 Stat. 163.), which was enacted in Title III of the Federal Consumer Credit Protection Act of 1968, effectively preempting, in part, State laws relating to wage garnishment.

The Congressional findings and declaration of purpose, 15 U.S.C. §1671, reads as follows:
(a) Disadvantages of garnishment

The Congress finds:

(1) The unrestricted garnishment of compensation due for personal services encourages the making of predatory extensions of credit. Such extensions of credit divert money into excessive credit payments and thereby hinder the production and flow of goods in interstate commerce.
(2) The application of garnishment as a creditors' remedy frequently results in loss of employment by the debtor, and the resulting disruption of employment, production, and consumption constitutes a substantial burden on interstate commerce.
(3) The great disparities among the laws of the several States relating to garnishment have, in effect, destroyed the uniformity of the bankruptcy laws and frustrated the purposes thereof in many areas of the country.
(b) Necessity for regulation

On the basis of the findings stated in subsection (a) of this section, the Congress determines that the provisions of this subchapter are necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying into execution the powers of the Congress to regulate commerce and to establish uniform bankruptcy laws.
See: Kentucky Garnishment statutes
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In Rice, Seiller, Cantor, Anderson & Bordy v. Fitzgerald, 824 S.W.2d 435 (Ky.App. 1992) the question before the court was "whether proceeds from a dairy farmer's sale of milk constitute 'earnings' within the meaning of KRS 427.005. If so, these 'earnings' are exempt under KRS 427.010 and partially protected from garnishment."

The Kentucky Court of Appeals cited with approval from Coones v. Federal Deposit Ins. Corp., 796 P.2d 803 (Wyo. 1990), construing a statute very similar to Kentucky's, "profits and business earnings are outside the meaning of wage and salary," and Roberts v. Frank Carrithers & Bros., 180 Ky. 315, 202 S.W. 659 (1918), which defined "wages and salary as consideration given by an employer to one who is providing the employer services."

Held: "The language of KRS 427.005 is limited in its application and does not include all compensation paid. We determine that proceeds from a diary farmer's sale of milk do not constitute "earnings" as defined in KRS 427.005. And, therefore, the proceeds from such a sale are not exempt under KRS 427.010."
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The appeal in Mickler v. Mickler, 245 S.W.3d 809 (Ky.App. 2008) involved a garnishment of money owed by various insurance companies to a physician for medical services provided through his private practice. Although the Kentucky Court of Appeals approved the idea that "accounts receivable" could fall within the meaning of KRS §427.005's definition of "earnings" if the money owed "was actually derived from the personal services of the debtor," the decision hinged upon the debtor's failure to meet a burden to prove the funds represented fees for the personal professional service delivered individually by the debtor, and not also including fees for services delivered by other staff and employees in the medical practice. Specifically, there was no obligation upon the trial court "to determine a formula by which to segregate the funds attributable to Dr. Mickler's work from those earned by others."
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Reinle v. Commonwealth, 170 S.W.3d 417 (Ky.App.2005) held that proceeds from the forced sale of real property to satisfy a judgment for child support was not "earnings."
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Curl v. Sparkle Brite Inc., 518 S.W.2d 775 (Ky.App.1975) was a decision under prior law (KRS §425.210 Repealed, 1976) recognizing the "right of an employer to set off as against an attaching creditor such amounts which the employer could validly set off against the claim of the employee." There is an unanswered question if this right still exists under the current statutory scheme.

KRS §427.170 - Federal bankruptcy code exemptions applicable in Kentucky (but only in Bankruptcy proceedings).

In 2005 the Kentucky legislature amended K.R.S. 427.170 to read:

An individual debtor domiciled in this state is authorized to exempt from property of said debtor's estate the property specified under 11 U.S.C. sec. 522(d).

Acts ch. 141, sec. 1, effective June 20, 2005
See: Bankruptcy exemptions 11 U.S.C. 522(d)
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MPM Financial Group, Inc. v. Morton
In 2007 the Kentucky Court of Appeals decided MPM Financial Group, Inc. v. Morton construing K.R.S. 427.170 to provide a general expansion of property exempt from execution for all purposes, and not just for Bankruptcy purposes.

In August, 2008, the Kentucky Supreme Court granted discretionary review of this decision. Its opinion was rendered June 25, 2009, and reversed the Kentucky Court of Appeals decision. See: MPM Financial Group, Inc. v. Morton, 289 S.W.3d 193 (2009).
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Leqal word du jour - preemption

2009-02-18T06:51:00.000-08:00

"Federal statutes impinging upon important state interests "cannot . . . be construed without regard to the implications of our dual system of government. . . . When the Federal Government takes over . . . local radiations in the vast network of our national economic enterprise and thereby radically readjusts the balance of state and national authority, those charged with the duty of legislating [must be] reasonably explicit." F. Frankfurter, Some Reflections on the Reading of Statutes, 47 Colum. L. Rev. 527, 539-540 (1947), quoted in Kelly v. Robinson,479 U.S. 36, 49-50 n. 11, 93 L. Ed. 2d 216, 107 S. Ct. 353 (1986). It is beyond question that an essential state interest is at issue here: we have said that "the general welfare of society is involved in the security of the titles to real estate" and the power to ensure that security "inheres in the very nature of [state] government." American Land Co. v. Zeiss,219 U.S. 47, 60, 55 L. Ed. 82, 31 S. Ct. 200 (1911)."

BFP v. Resolution Trust Corporation, 114 S. Ct. 1757, 128 L. Ed. 2d 556 (1994).

In the legal system of the United States, preemption generally refers to the displacing effect that federal law will have on a conflicting or inconsistent state law. The Supremacy Clause (Article VI, section 2) of the United States Constitution states that The Laws of the United States, (which shall be made in Pursuance to the Constitution), shall be the supreme Law of the land. Thus, when there is a conflict between a state law and federal law, the federal law (subject to the Tenth Amendment and Fifth Amendment and other Constitutional Law) trumps – or "preempts" – the state law, according to this theory. The term is also sometimes used to refer to the displacing effect state laws might have on ordinances enacted by municipalities.

The term "preemption" is also used in federal statutes in the context of land, such as in the historic Preemption Act of 1841, which allowed settlers the opportunity to legally obtain title to land if a settler remained on a plot of land for a certain time. This article does not cover that legal use of the term.

Wikipedia

Legal Aid - Kentucky

2009-02-13T09:51:00.000-08:00

Legal Aid Network of Kentucky

Information source and provides support to regional direct legal aid providers listed below.

Regional legal aid providers

Louisville Legal Aid Society
- Louisville and the surrounding counties

Counties Served:

Breckinridge Bullitt Grayson Hardin Henry Jefferson Larue Marion Meade Nelson Oldham Shelby Spencer Trimble Washington

Offices:

Legal Aid Society
416 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd.
Louisville, KY 40202
(502) 584-1254 or (800) 292-1862
(502) 584-8014 fax

HIV/AIDS Legal Project
810 Barret Avenue, Suite 301
Louisville, KY 40204
(502) 574-8199
(502) 574-5244 fax
Appalachian Research and Defense Fund, Inc.
- eastern and south central Kentucky.

Counties Served:

Adair Bell Breathitt Casey Clark Clay Clinton Cumberland Estill Floyd Garrard Harlan Jackson Johnson Knott Knox Laurel Lawrence Lee Leslie Letcher Lincoln McCreary Madison Magoffin Martin Monroe Owsley Perry Pike Powell Pulaski Rockcastle Russell Wayne Whitley Wolfe
Kentucky Legal Aid
- western Kentucky.

Counties Served:

Allen Ballard Barren Butler Caldwell Calloway Carlisle Christian Crittenden Daviess Edmonson Fulton Graves Green Hancock Hart Henderson Hickman Hopkins Livingston Logan Lyon McCracken McLean Marshall Metcalfe Muhlenberg Ohio Simpson Taylor Todd Trigg Union Warren Webster

Offices:

Bowling Green
1700 Destiny Lane
Bowling Green, KY 42104
Local: 270-782-1924
Toll Free: 800-782-1924

Madisonville
100 South Railroad St.
Madisonville, KY 42431
Local: 270-825-3801
Toll Free: 800-467-2193

Owensboro
117 West Second St.
Owensboro, KY 42303
Local: 270-683-4585
Toll Free: 800-467-2260

Paducah
1122 Jefferson St.
Paducah, KY 42001
Local: 270-442-5518
Toll Free: 800-467-2218

Satellite Offices

Glasgow
123 East Washington St.
Glasgow, KY 42141

Hopkinsville
1411 South Main St.
Hopkinsville, KY 42240
Legal Aid of the Bluegrass
- northern and central Kentucky.

Counties Served:

Anderson Bath Boone Bourbon Boyd Boyle Bracken Campbell Carroll Carter Elliott Fayette Fleming Franklin Gallatin Grant Greenup Harrison Jessamine Kenton Lewis Mason Menifee Mercer Montgomery Morgan Nicholas Owen Pendleton Robertson Rowan Scott Woodford

Offices:

104 East 7th Street
Covington KY 41011
Phone: 859-431-8200
Fax: 859-431-3009

Other resources and specialty services

Access to Justice Foundation

535 West Second Street,
Suite 101
Lexington, KY 40508

Phone: 859-255-9913
Fax: 859-231-5356

The Access to Justice Foundation promotes public awareness of the legal assistance needs of the poor and it also provides training to legal services staff and private attorneys in legal issues of concern to low-income Kentuckians.

Appalachian Law Center

Children's Law Center, Inc.

Kentucky Resources Council, Inc.

The Maxwell Street Legal Clinic

The Kentucky Equal Justice Center

Law Fox

Terms of service

Notes on Kentucky exemption law

Kentucky exemption law

KRS §427.005 - Definitions.

KRS §427.170 - Federal bankruptcy code exemptions applicable in Kentucky (but only in Bankruptcy proceedings).

Leqal word du jour - preemption

Legal Aid - Kentucky

Louisville Legal Aid Society

Appalachian Research and Defense Fund, Inc.

Kentucky Legal Aid

Legal Aid of the Bluegrass