Independent agency. There is hereby established as an independent agency of state government, attached for administrative purposes to the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, the Department of Public Advocacy, in order to provide for the establishment, maintenance, and operation of a state-sponsored and controlled system for:
(1) The representation of indigent persons accused of crimes or mental states which may result in their incarceration or confinement; and
(2) The pursuit of legal, administrative, and other appropriate remedies to ensure the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities, independent of any agency that provides treatment, services, or rehabilitation to persons with disabilities. For the purposes of this chapter, "persons with disabilities" shall refer to those persons eligible for protection and advocacy services under Public Laws 99-319, 102-569, 103-218, 106-170, and 106-402 as amended and any other federal enabling statute hereafter enacted that defines the eligible client base for protection and advocacy services. Effective:June 29, 2017 History: Amended 2017 Ky. Acts ch. 167, sec. 9, effective June 29, 2017. -- Amended 2012 Ky. Acts ch. 151, sec. 2, effective July 12, 2012. -- Amended 2007 Ky. Acts ch. 85, sec. 115, effective June 26, 2007. -- Amended 2002 Ky. Acts ch. 283, sec. 1, effective July 15, 2002. -- Amended 1984 Ky. Acts ch. 338, sec. 1, effective July 13, 1984. -- Amended 1978 Ky. Acts ch. 155, sec. 19, effective June 17, 1978. -- Amended 1976 Ky. Acts ch. 177, sec. 1. -- Created 1972 Ky. Acts ch. 353, sec. 1. Legislative Research Commission Note (6/26/2007). 2007 Ky. Acts ch. 85, relating to the creation and organization of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, instructs the Reviser of Statutes to correct statutory references to agencies and officers whose names have been changed in that Act. Such a correction has been made in this section.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
15
cases (
7 in the last 5 years), 1978–2026 · leading case:
Moore v. Commonwealth, 199 S.W.3d 132 (Ky. 2006).
Moore v. Commonwealth, 199 S.W.3d 132 (Ky. 2006).
· cites it 2× “KRS 31.010. Those statutes defining the authority and duties of the DPA's attorneys, e.”
Ex Parte Farley, 570 S.W.2d 617 (Ky. 1978).
“His office is an “independent agency of state government,” KRS 31.010, and its duties include the defense of indigent defendants in criminal cases.”
Lincoln Cnty. Fiscal Court v. Dep't of Pub. Advocacy, 794 S.W.2d 162 (Ky. 1990).
“1, 1976; now codified as KRS 31.010(1). In expanding Ch. 31 to cover representation in involuntary commitment of the mentally ill as well as defense of criminal cases, the General Assembly dropped the phrase in KRS 31.”
Keysor v. Commonwealth, 486 S.W.3d 273 (Ky. 2016).
“6 The *281 Kentucky Rules of Evidence, adopted by this Court with the express endorsement of the General Assembly, include KRE 503, “Lawyer-client privilege,” to protect the confidentiality of lawyer-client communications.”
Farmer v. Gonzalez (E.D. Ky. 2022).
· cites it 2× “030(1)–(15) (granting public defenders specific authorities and duties to accomplish the purposes set forth in § 31.010). But state action is not limited to an official’s actual or apparent duties.”
Couch v. KY Dept. Of Pub. Advocacy, Commonwealth of (E.D. Ky. 2023).
· cites it 2× “July 2, 2012) (“The Department of Public Advocacy is an independent agency of state government, see Ky.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 31.010, and it is firmly established that a defense attorney, regardless of whether he is a public defender or private attorney, is not a state actor for…”
Goodrich v. Cavanaugh (W.D. Ky. 2020).
· cites it 2× “1 Ky. Rev. Stat. § 31.010 establishes the DPA as an independent agency of the state government.”
O'Bannon v. McMahon (W.D. Ky. 2025).
· cites it 2× “3, 2011) (Ky. Rev. Stat. § 31.010 establishes DPA as state agency), and it is well-settled that a state and its agencies are not “persons” subject to suit under § 1983.”
White (E.D. Ky. 2026).
· cites it 2× “Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 31.010 ; 31.030. To ensure that the rights of individuals with mental illness are protected, Congress explicitly authorized KP&A to have access to the records of individuals with mental illness under the PAIMI Act.”
Forrest (W.D. Ky. 2026).
· cites it 2× “3, 2011) (Ky. Rev. Stat. § 31.010 establishes DPA as state agency).”
Morgan v. Crickmer (E.D. Ky. 2023).
“Here, at bottom, Morgan is complaining about his public defender’s conduct—such as the filing of paperwork in court—while that person is functioning as his counsel in his ongoing criminal proceeding.”
— Ky. Rev. Stat. § 31.010(1) — 4 cases
Lincoln Cnty. Fiscal Court v. Dep't of Pub. Advocacy, 794 S.W.2d 162 (Ky. 1990).
“1, 1976; now codified as KRS 31.010(1). In expanding Ch. 31 to cover representation in involuntary commitment of the mentally ill as well as defense of criminal cases, the General Assembly dropped the phrase in KRS 31.”
Farmer v. Gonzalez (E.D. Ky. 2022).
“030(1)–(15) (granting public defenders specific authorities and duties to accomplish the purposes set forth in § 31.010). But state action is not limited to an official’s actual or apparent duties.”
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