Hiring a Wrongful Death Lawyer in Kentucky
Who can bring a wrongful death claim in Kentucky, the deadline, limits on damages, how lawyers usually charge (contingency fees), how to check a lawyer's license, and free help. We do not recommend or rank lawyers.
What a lawyer costs in Kentucky: fee rules
| If you disagree with a lawyer's bill | The Kentucky Bar Association offers Legal Fee Arbitration under Supreme Court Rule 3.810 for disputes between a lawyer and client over the fee for particular legal services. It is free, and panel members are unpaid. It is voluntary: either side may start it, and the other side has 20 days to agree. Once both agree, the panel's award is binding and enforceable under KRS 417.180. |
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| If a lawyer takes your money | The KBA Clients' Security Fund, paid for by Kentucky lawyers' dues, provides discretionary partial restitution to clients who lost money through a Kentucky lawyer's dishonesty, fraud or other unethical conduct (such as theft, embezzlement or conversion) within the attorney-client relationship; malpractice losses are not covered. Caps: $50,000 per claim and $150,000 total per attorney (prorated if claims exceed the cap); only actual financial losses are paid. File no later than two years after you knew or should have known of the dishonesty. There is no fee, and no lawyer may charge to file a claim for you. |
Kentucky rules to know first
| Who can sue | The lawsuit must be brought by the personal representative of the person who died. After funeral expenses, administration costs and costs of recovery (including attorney fees), the money goes to family in this order: the surviving spouse alone if there are no children; half to the spouse and half to the children if there are both; the children if there is no spouse; the parents if there is no spouse or child; and otherwise into the estate for more distant relatives. Source: KRS 411.130 |
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| Deadline to file | The wrongful death statute itself does not state a filing deadline. Kentucky's one-year limit for personal injury actions applies to actions listed in KRS 413.090 to 413.160, and when a person dies, the personal representative may sue within one year after being appointed (qualified); if more than a year passes between the death and the appointment, the representative is treated as appointed on the last day of that one-year period. For deaths from motor vehicle accidents, the Motor Vehicle Reparations Act allows a tort action within two years after the death or the last no-fault benefit payment, whichever is later. How these sections combine for wrongful death comes from Kentucky court decisions; confirm the exact deadline for a specific case. |
| Damage caps | No. The Kentucky Constitution says the General Assembly has no power to limit the amount that can be recovered for injuries resulting in death or for injuries to person or property. Source: Ky. Const. § 54 |
Find and check a lawyer
| Lawyer referral service | The Kentucky Bar Association does not run a referral service; as a public service it lists regional lawyer referral services that are "not affiliated with the Kentucky Bar Association": Central Kentucky Lawyer Referral Service, (859) 225-8644, weekdays 9 a.m.-4 p.m. (Bourbon, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Jessamine, Madison, Scott and Woodford counties); Kentucky Lawyer Referral Service, (502) 583-1801, weekdays 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (Jefferson and surrounding counties, plus several southern Indiana counties); and Northern Kentucky Bar Association Lawyer Referral Services, (859) 781-1525 (Boone, Campbell, Carroll, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton, Owen and Pendleton counties). The KBA also offers a Directory of Kentucky Attorneys. |
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| Check that the lawyer is licensed | The Kentucky Bar Association's Find a Lawyer page (Directory of Kentucky Attorneys) lets the public search for Kentucky attorneys; the KBA also posts a list of currently suspended and disbarred lawyers. |
| Check discipline history or file a complaint | Complaints about Kentucky lawyers go to the KBA's Office of Bar Counsel on its sworn complaint form, which must have a notarized signature; complaints cannot be submitted by phone, email or fax. Use one form per attorney (not a firm), state specifically what the lawyer did or failed to do, list witnesses, and attach copies (not originals) of documents. Complaints are first reviewed to see whether they allege an investigable ethics violation; the complainant is a witness, not a party, and the matter is confidential at this stage under SCR 3.150. To have a form mailed, call (502) 564-3795 ext. 723. Kentucky Bar Association: 514 W. Main St., Frankfort, KY 40601. Attorney discipline: https://kybar.org/For-Members/Office-of-Bar-Counsel/Attorney-Discipline |
Free legal help
| Free legal aid | Kentucky's LSC-funded legal aid organizations give free civil legal help to eligible low-income people by region: Appalachian Research and Defense Fund of Kentucky (AppalReD), Kentucky Legal Aid, Legal Aid of the Bluegrass and Legal Aid Society (Louisville). The Kentucky Bar Association notes, "If you cannot afford an attorney, a legal aid program may be able to help." |
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General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.