IOLTA Compliance Certification.  Complete your annual compliance certification by logging into your Kentucky Bar Association account and answering/updating the IOLTA questions on the Member Profile Page.

IOLTA New Account Enrollment Form. Log into your Kentucky Bar Association account to access the new account enrollment form. Use this online process to enroll your client trust or escrow account in Kentucky's mandatory IOLTA program.  Effective July 2025 you must login to your Kentucky Bar Association account to access this form.

Kentucky Supreme Court Rule 3.830.   This rule establishes the Kentucky IOLTA Fund and all related procedures.

Unclaimed Funds. Use this form to remit unclaimed funds in your IOLTA account to the Kentucky IOLTA Fund. See FAQ below for more information.

Pursuant to Kentucky Supreme Court Rule 3.830, all Kentucky attorneys must participate in the IOLTA program unless they qualify for an exemption.

A lawyer is exempt from participating in the IOLTA program if he or she falls within one of the specific exemptions in SCR 3.830(14).  The more common exemptions include attorneys who are not engaged in private practice, do not have trust accounts in Kentucky, do not manage or handle client trust funds, or for whom compliance would be extremely impractical, based on the geographic distance between the lawyer's principal office and the closest participating financial institution, or on other compelling and necessary factors.  For exemption questions, or to request a hardship exemption, contact the Kentucky IOLTA Fund office at (800) 874-6582.

SCR 3.830(13) requires that all Kentucky lawyers certify annually on or before September 1 of each year that they are in compliance with, or exempt from, the provisions of that rule requiring participation in IOLTA.  Attorneys may certify their compliance by updating their IOLTA information on their Member Profile Page after logging into their Kentucky Bar Association online account.

Currently, 143 banks across Kentucky offer IOLTA accounts to their customers.  Many have recognized the important public purpose served by the IOLTA program and have waived fees on these accounts, in addition to paying favorable interest rates.  The support and generosity of these partner banks enables the IOLTA Fund to award significant grants for legal aid each year.  Click here to see a list of participating banks.

If your bank does not presently participate in the IOLTA program and is interested in becoming a participant, please have your bank contact Program Manager Gwen Smallenburg at gsmallenburg@kybar.org or (800) 874-6582.  Additional information about becoming a participating bank is available here.

Should a lawyer's bank refuse to offer an IOLTA account, the attorney will need to move his or her trust account to a bank that does offer IOLTA accounts.  The IOLTA Fund can help you to locate a participating bank in your area, so please contact us at (800) 874-6582 if you need assistance.

There is no approval process for opening an IOLTA account and, so, an attorney or law firm may open a client trust or escrow/IOLTA account at their discretion.  But anytime a new account is established, a New IOLTA Account Enrollment Form should be completed so that the account is enrolled in Kentucky's mandatory IOLTA program.  You will need to login to the Kentucky Bar Association website in order to access this form, and then submit it online.  Once submitted, the Kentucky IOLTA Fund will then enter the account into its records and process it on to the bank via secure email.  The bank will then convert the account to interest-bearing and assign the Kentucky Bar Foundation's tax identification number to the account to ensure that the interest is properly reported as being paid to the Kentucky IOLTA Fund, a nonprofit organization.  The bank may change the account name to "Kentucky Bar Foundation IOLTA Trust account for [name of lawyer or firm]" in order to prevent the Internal Revenue Service from issuing a "B" notice to the lawyer because the named holder of the account and the tax identification number do not match.  This account name change does not limit a lawyer's flexibility in choosing the name to be printed on checks and deposit slips.  Since the Kentucky IOLTA Fund is the beneficial holder of the interest, IOLTA client trust accounts qualify for interest-bearing accounts that are open to individual attorneys and law firms, regardless of whether the firm is a partnership, limited liability company, or professional service corporation.

Enrolling a client trust account in the IOLTA program does not result in additional bank service charges for lawyers because the IOLTA Fund pays any reasonable bank charges or service fees associated with the account's interest-bearing status.  Lawyers remain responsible for all other fees, such as check printing charges, wire transfer fees, and overdraft fees.

Since the Kentucky IOLTA Fund is a "fund of The Kentucky Bar Foundation, Inc.," a 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with beneficial ownership of interest generated by IOLTA accounts, all such interest is exempt from tax under federal and state tax laws. 

They should be sent to the attorney or firm in charge of the account, not to the Kentucky IOLTA Fund.

Lawyers are required to keep the Kentucky IOLTA Fund informed of any changes to their IOLTA accounts or their law firm affiliation.

Overdrafts are managed by the Kentucky Bar Association Office of Bar Counsel.  If your IOLTA account is overdrawn, contact the OBC at (502) 564-3795. Overdrafts are not managed by the Kentucky IOLTA Fund office.

The Kentucky IOLTA Fund may periodically recognize those lawyers, firms, and banks that participate in the program.  Any other information that the Fund receives regarding IOLTA accounts is confidential and available only to IOLTA staff and Trustees.

SCR 3.830(21) allows unclaimed funds to be remitted to the Kentucky IOLTA Fund provided that reasonable efforts, as set forth in the rule, to locate the rightful owner of the funds have been conducted. Remit unclaimed funds by completing this form and mailing it, along with a check for the funds, to Kentucky IOLTA Fund, 514 W. Main Street, Frankfort, KY 40601.

Kentucky Rule of Civil Procedure (CR) 23.05 sets forth the procedures governing a proposed settlement, voluntary dismissal, or compromise of a class action.  CR 23.05(6) address the disposition of any "residual funds," which are funds remaining after the payment of all approved claims, expenses, costs, fees, and other court-approved disbursements to implement the relief granted.  In actions where the claims process has been exhausted and residual funds remain, 23.05(6)(b) requires that not less than 25% of the residual funds be disbursed to the Civil Rule 23 Account maintained by the Kentucky IOLTA Fund Board of Trustees.  Such funds are then allocated to Kentucky's civil legal aid organizations to support activities and programs that promote access to the civil justice system for low-income resident of Kentucky.