Vehicle towing often leaves the public exposed to predatory practices. Given the towing industry’s rapid expansion, its role in the seizure of personal property, and an increase in predatory towing claims, U.S. citizens are placed in an increasingly vulnerable position. While state-level towing protections vary significantly across the country, citizens can capitalize on the Fourth Amendment's protections to combat predatory towing practices. The problem, however, is that the scope of this constitutional protection is indeterminate in the face of a growing circuit split.

The average patron who walks into a Kentucky racetrack might expect extravagant outfits, mint juleps, and rows of live thoroughbreds charging down the track. That traditional image still exists. Yet, it is no longer the only defining feature of Kentucky’s racing landscape. Walk into the Red Mile in Lexington on a typical day, and the most prominent form of wagering is not on live racing, but on a large gaming floor filled with electronic terminals. The rise of Historical Horse Racing machines illustrates a broader feature of modern gambling regulation: Whether a new wagering technology is permissible often turns less on how it functions and more on how the law chooses to define it.

Public agencies across the Commonwealth are rapidly adopting generative AI, necessitating consideration of internal policies to address its use. However, as a recent Kentucky Attorney General Opinion shows, a carefully crafted policy may allow these agencies to shield their AI usage from the general public. Kentucky public agencies and their policymakers should consider the decision’s impact on their Kentucky Open Records Act obligations. KLJ Volume 114, Staff Editor, Nathan Brummett argues that agencies that follow the guidance of the Kentucky Open Records Act can place themselves on the forefront of AI usage in public agencies while still ensuring they remain compliant with the spirit of the Act.

An effective process to discharge federal student loan debt in bankruptcy was created in guidance published by the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) to its attorneys in 2022. Yet, despite a growing number of student loan borrowers falling irretrievably into arrears, many continue to view student loans as practically non-dischargeable. Kentucky practitioners who represent consumers in bankruptcy should familiarize themselves with the DOJ’s process for discharging student loan debt. KLJ Volume 114, Staff Editor, Jon E.B. McGee argues Kentucky practitioners should consider all alternatives for their clients burdened by student debt.

Kentucky has a regrettable history of providing inadequate protection to the animals that call the Bluegrass home. While the Commonwealth has made considerable improvements to its animal protection laws in recent years, it is essential the legislature continues to close the large gaps that exist, because Kentucky’s animals deserve more than the bare minimum. KLJ Volume 114, Staff Editor, Julia Wattenbarger advocates for increasing animal protection legislation in the Commonwealth.

Nearly all of the world’s bourbon is produced in the Commonwealth, with the aging barrels outnumbering the local residents. Until recently, Kentucky was the only state to place a tax on those aging barrels, turning the state’s signature industry into a significant tax revenue source that funded state and local governments. Yet, in 2023, the Kentucky General Assembly voted to phase out the tax on aging barrels. KLJ Vol. 114 Staff Editor Ashley Peal adds insight as to how this phase out will impact key stakeholders in the Commonwealth.

In the United States, electronic cigarette usage is rising and represents “the most commonly used tobacco product” plaguing the youth population. In the Commonwealth, this problem is of particular concern as Kentucky has the second highest rate of e-cigarette use in the nation. KLJ Vol. 114 Staff Editor Lilly Stephens proposes a solution to the crisis by calling on the Commonwealth’s legislature to continue increasing the state tax on all sales of vapor products.

While policymakers and industry actors have sought to replicate the functions of paper bills of lading through the electronic bill of lading, widespread institutional adoption of the modern development has been hindered by legal uncertainty and distrust. KLJ Volume 114 Staff Editor Zachary Lee explores the drawbacks of the electronic bill of lading and explains why paper versions are still the dominant instrument in modern international trade.

Every first-year property student is introduced to the familiar “bundle of sticks” metaphor, including the right to exclude others from your private property. Yet state and federal actors are trying to “snap” this bundle by forbidding landowners from lease termination and non-renewal. As the constitutionality of these moratoria is called into question, property owners across the country remain in a state of limbo. KLJ Volume 114 Staff Editor Logan Hopson dives into the split between circuits and advocates for clarity from the Supreme Court.