{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-311.732","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 311.732","heading":"Performance  of abortion upon  a minor -- Definitions -- Notice --","body":"Consent  requirement -- Petition in District or Circuit Court -- Hearing --\nReport -- Medical emergencies.\n(1) For purposes of this section the following definitions shall apply:\n(a) \"Minor\" means any person under the age of eighteen (18);\n(b) \"Emancipated minor\" means  any minor who is or has been married or\nhas by court order or otherwise been freed from the care, custody, and\ncontrol of her parents; and\n(c) \"Abortion\" means the use of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other\nsubstance or device with intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman\nknown  to be pregnant with intent other than to increase the probability of\na live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to\nremove a dead fetus.\n(2) No person shall perform an abortion upon a minor unless:\n(a) The attending physician has secured the informed written consent of the\nminor and one (1) parent or legal guardian with joint or physical custody\nand  the consenting parent or legal guardian of the minor has made  a\nreasonable attempt to notify any other parent with joint or physical\ncustody at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to providing the informed\nwritten consent.\n1. Notice shall not be required to be provided to any parent who has:\na. Previously been enjoined by a domestic violence order or\ninterpersonal protective order, regardless of whether or not the\nperson to be protected by the order was the minor; or\nb. Been  convicted of, or entered into a diversion program for, a\ncriminal offense against a victim who is a minor as defined in\nKRS  17.500 or for a violent or sexual criminal offense under\nKRS  Chapter 506, 507, 507A, 508, 509, 510, 529, 530, or 531.\n2. The informed written consent shall include:\na. A copy of the minor's government-issued identification, a copy\nof  the  consenting  parent's  or  legal  guardian's\ngovernment-issued identification, and written documentation\nincluding but not limited to a birth certificate, court-ordered\ncustodial paperwork, or tax return, establishing that he or she\nis the lawful parent or legal guardian; and\nb. The  parent's or legal guardian's certification that he or she\nconsents to the abortion. The certification shall be in a signed,\ndated, and notarized document that has been initialed on each\npage  and that contains the following statement, which shall\nprecede the signature of the parent or legal guardian: \"I, (insert\nname  of parent or legal guardian), am the (select \"parent\" or\n\"legal guardian\") of (insert name of minor) and give consent for\n(insert name of attending physician) to perform an abortion on\nher. Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have read the\nforegoing statement and that the facts stated in it are true.\"\n3. The  attending physician shall keep a copy of the informed written\nconsent in the medical file of the minor for five (5) years after the\nminor reaches eighteen (18) years of age or for seven (7) years,\nwhichever is longer.\n4. The attending physician securing the informed written consent from\na parent or legal guardian under this subsection shall execute for\ninclusion in the medical record of the minor an affidavit stating: \"I,\n(insert name  of attending physician), certify that, according to my\nbest information and belief, a reasonable person under similar\ncircumstances would rely on the information presented by both the\nminor and her parent or legal guardian as sufficient evidence of\nidentity.\";\n(b) The  minor is emancipated and the attending physician has received the\ninformed written consent of the minor; or\n(c) The  minor elects to petition any  Circuit or District Court of the\nCommonwealth  pursuant to subsection (3) of this section and obtain an\norder pursuant to subsection (4) of this section granting consent to the\nabortion and the attending physician has received the informed written\nconsent of the minor.\n(3) Every minor shall have the right to petition any Circuit or District Court of the\nCommonwealth  for an order granting the right to self-consent to an abortion\npursuant to the following procedures:\n(a) The minor or her next friend may prepare and file a petition setting forth\nthe request of the minor for an order of consent to an abortion;\n(b) The court shall ensure that the minor prepares or her next friend is given\nassistance in preparing and filing the petition and shall ensure that the\nminor's identity is kept anonymous;\n(c) The minor may participate in proceedings in the court on her own behalf\nor through her next friend and the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem\nfor her. The court shall advise her that she has a right to court-appointed\ncounsel and shall provide her with such counsel upon her request;\n(d) All proceedings under this section shall be anonymous and shall be given\npreference over other matters to ensure that the court may  reach a\ndecision promptly, but in no case shall the court fail to rule within\nseventy-two (72) hours of the time of application, provided that the\nseventy-two (72) hour limitation may be extended at the request of the\nminor; and\n(e) The  court shall hold a hearing on the merits of the petition before\nreaching a decision. The court shall hear evidence at the hearing relating\nto:\n1. The minor's:\na. Age;\nb. Emotional development and stability;\nc. Maturity;\nd. Intellect;\ne. Credibility and demeanor as a witness;\nf. Ability to accept responsibility;\ng. Ability to assess both the current and future life-impacting\nconsequences of, and alternatives to, the abortion; and\nh. Ability to understand and explain the medical risks of the\nabortion and to apply that understanding to her decision; and\n2. Whether  there may  be any undue influence by another on the\nminor's decision to have an abortion.\n(4) (a) If the court finds by:\n1. Clear and convincing evidence that the minor is sufficiently mature\nto decide whether to have an abortion;\n2. Clear and convincing evidence that the requirements of this section\nare not in the best interest of the minor; or\n3. A preponderance of the evidence that the minor is the victim of child\nabuse or sexual abuse inflicted by one (1) or both of her parents or\nher legal guardian;\nthe court shall enter a written order, making specific factual findings and\nlegal conclusions supporting its decision to grant the petition for an\nabortion.\n(b) If the court does not make any of the findings specified in paragraph (a)\nof this subsection, the court shall deny the petition.\n(c) As used in this subsection, \"best interest of the minor\" shall not include\nfinancial best interest, financial considerations, or the potential financial\nimpact on the minor or the minor's family if the minor does not have an\nabortion.\n(5) Any  minor shall have the right of anonymous  and expedited appeal to the\nCourt of Appeals, and that court shall give precedence over other pending\nmatters.\n(6) All hearings under this section, including appeals, shall remain confidential and\nclosed to the public. The hearings shall be held in chambers or in a similarly\nprivate and informal setting within the courthouse.\n(7) No  fees shall be required of any minor who declares she has no sufficient\nfunds to pursue the procedures provided by this section.\n(8) (a) The Supreme Court is respectfully requested to promulgate any rules and\nregulations it feels are necessary to ensure that proceedings under this\nsection are handled in an expeditious and anonymous manner.\n(b) The Supreme Court, through the Administrative Office of the Courts, shall\nreport by  February 1  of each  year to the Legislative Research\nCommission  and the cabinet on the number  of petitions filed under\nsubsection (3) of this section for the preceding year, and the timing and\nmanner  of disposal of the petition by each court. For each approved\npetition granting an abortion filed under subsection (3) of this section, the\nspecific court finding in subsection (4) of this section shall be included in\nthe report.\n(9) (a) The requirements of subsections (2), (3), and (4) of this section shall not\napply when, in the best medical judgment of the physician based on the\nfacts of the case before him or her, a medical emergency exists that so\ncomplicates the pregnancy as to require an immediate abortion.\n(b) If a medical emergency  exists, the physician shall make  reasonable\nattempts, whenever  possible, and without endangering the minor, to\ncontact the parent or legal guardian of the minor, and may proceed, but\nmust document reasons for the medical necessity in the minor's medical\nrecords.\n(c) The  physician shall inform the parent or legal guardian, in person or by\ntelephone, within twenty-four (24) hours of the abortion, including details\nof the medical emergency  that necessitated the abortion without the\nparent's or legal guardian's consent. The physician shall also provide this\ninformation in writing to the parent or legal guardian at his or her last\nknown  address by first-class mail or by certified mail, return receipt\nrequested, with delivery restricted to the parent or legal guardian.\n(10) A report indicating the basis for any medical judgment that warrants failure to\nobtain consent pursuant to this section shall be filed with the Cabinet for Health\nand  Family Services on a form supplied by the cabinet. This report shall be\nconfidential.\n(11) Failure to obtain consent pursuant to the requirements of this section is prima\nfacie evidence of failure to obtain informed consent and of interference with\nfamily relations in appropriate civil actions. The law of this state shall not be\nconstrued to preclude the award of exemplary damages in any appropriate civil\naction relevant to violations of this section. Nothing in this section shall be\nconstrued to limit the common-law rights of parents.\n(12) A  minor upon whom  an abortion is performed is not guilty of violating this\nsection.","path":["KRS Chapter 311"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=52213","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:58:06Z","sha256":"c82ed9c74f90d3345e18b444e16a83bb301e3cfcfa50f49343d162e8178676c5","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-311.731","next":"us-ky/krs-311.733"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}