Bowman Legal, Inc.

07/10/2026

A grandmother, a grandfather, and an aunt were found to have abused a five month old child. Not because anyone could say what they did. Not because anyone could say when it happened. Just because they had, at some point, been in the house.

The Cabinet's own investigator admitted she could not identify who caused the child's injuries. The family court judge said on the record, "I don't know who did it. I'm not going to lay the blame at any person's foot." He adjudicated all three relatives anyway.

We appealed. This week, the Kentucky Court of Appeals reversed, and published its opinion, which means this ruling is now binding on every family court in Kentucky. Access to a household is not evidence of abuse. Occasional babysitting does not make a grandmother a custodian under the law.

This is a win for our clients, and it is a win for every extended family who could otherwise be swept into a case on nothing more than proximity.

Read the full breakdown, with links to every case and statute cited in the opinion, at the link below.

https://judgegotitwrong.com/guilt-by-address-kentucky-court-of-appeals-reverses-dna-findings-against-grandparents-and-aunt/

Attorney advertising. This post does not create an attorney client relationship, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in your case.

05/29/2026

Appellate win: The Kentucky Court of Appeals vacated a Jefferson County Family Court order that had granted sole custody to one parent and cut off the other parent's contact with his children entirely.

The Court found the family court failed to make the specific findings of fact required by KRS 403.270(2) and KRS 403.320, and improperly took judicial notice of companion cases without giving the father notice or a chance to be heard. The order was vacated and the case remanded for a new hearing.

The lesson for Kentucky parents: a family court can't just announce a result — it has to explain its reasoning with findings tied to the statutory factors. When it doesn't, that order is vulnerable on appeal.

Read the full breakdown:
https://www.bowmanlegalgroup.com/ky-legal-update/kentucky-court-of-appeals-vacates-custody-order-why-the-details-in-a-family-court-order-matter/

05/29/2026

Appellate win: The Kentucky Court of Appeals vacated a Jefferson County Family Court order that had granted sole custody to one parent and cut off the other parent's contact with his children entirely.

The Court found the family court failed to make the specific findings of fact required by KRS 403.270(2) and KRS 403.320, and improperly took judicial notice of companion cases without giving the father notice or a chance to be heard. The order was vacated and the case remanded for a new hearing.

The lesson for Kentucky parents: a family court can't just announce a result — it has to explain its reasoning with findings tied to the statutory factors. When it doesn't, that order is vulnerable on appeal.

Read the full breakdown:
https://www.bowmanlegalgroup.com/ky-legal-update/kentucky-court-of-appeals-vacates-custody-order-why-the-details-in-a-family-court-order-matter/

01/09/2026

www.bowmanlegalgroup.com/ky-legal-update/kentucky-court-of-appeals-reinforces-due-process-in-domestic-violence-cases-what-allen-v-newton-means-for-family-law-litigants

Kentucky Court of Appeals clarifies that family courts must hold evidentiary hearings after issuing an EPO. Learn how Allen v. Newton impacts domestic violence cases, custody disputes, abuse and neglect proceedings, and family law appeals across Kentucky—and why experienced family law counsel matt...