Ky. Rev. Stat. » Chapter 394
Kentucky Revised Statutes

Ky. Rev. Stat. § 394.140 (2026)

Will probated in District Court -- Venue

✓ current as of May 2026
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Wills shall be proved before, and admitted to record by, the District Court of the testator's residence (if such residence was on a United States Army post, military reservation or fort, it may be proved and admitted to record in the District Court of any county adjacent thereto); if he had no known place of residence in this state, and land is devised, then in the county where the land or part thereof lies; if no land is devised, then in the county where he died, or where his estate or part thereof is, or where there is a debt or demand owing to him. Effective: January 2, 1978 History: Amended 1976 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 14, sec. 356, effective January 2, 1978. -- Amended 1964 Ky. Acts ch. 156, sec. 1. -- Recodified 1942 Ky. Acts ch. 208, sec. 1, effective October 1, 1942, from Ky. Stat. sec. 4849.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 7 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1946–2022 · leading case: McElroy v. Taylor, 977 S.W.2d 929 (Ky. 1998).
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McElroy v. Taylor, 977 S.W.2d 929 (Ky. 1998). · cites it 2× “120(2); KRS 394.140; KRS 395.030. A copy of a spouse's renunciation of a will must be filed with the district court and the district court has the authority to extend the period for renunciation.”
Allen v. Lovell's Adm'x, 197 S.W.2d 424 (Ky. Ct. App. 1946). “In this state the county court of the Testator’s residence is given the original and exclusive jurisdiction to probate wills, by reasQn of KRS 394.140. See Taylor v. Lyon, 249 Ky. 398 , 60 S.”
Hensley v. O'Forest, 233 S.W.2d 996 (Ky. Ct. App. 1950). “_ “The county court has jurisdiction to probate wills, * * KRS 394.130. “No will shall be received in evidence until it has been allowed and admitted to record by a county court; and its probate before such court shall be conclusive, except as to the jurisdiction of the court,…”
Dennison v. Roberts, 439 S.W.2d 577 (Ky. Ct. App. 1968). “*579 Procedure in will cases is governed by KRS 394.140 et seq. Will contests in the circuit court such as the one here are provided for by KRS 394.”
Angela Mason in Her Capacity as of the Est. of Norma Catherine Mason-Stikes v. Howard L. Stikes, Both in His Capacity as Adm'r of the Est. of William T. Stikes, Jr. (Ky. Ct. App. 2022). · cites it 7× “Standing First, Executor Angela claims she has standing because Kentucky law allows a non-resident’s estate to be probated “where there is a debt or demand owing to [her].”
Bankemper v. Boone Cnty. Aviation, Inc., 435 S.W.2d 58 (Ky. Ct. App. 1968). “140 provides that: “Wills shall be proved before, and admitted to record by, the county court of the testator’s residence; if he had no known place of residence in this state, and land is devised, then in the county where the land or part thereof lies; if no land is devised,…”
Schmitt v. Kentucky Trust Co. of Louisville, 429 S.W.2d 839 (Ky. Ct. App. 1968). “If the fact of death had to be established in a court of general jurisdiction before a county court could entertain the administration of an estate, it seems to us that it would be equally necessary in a case of actual death as in the instance of presumed death.”
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