Jury Duty

By: Barry G. Allen- President & CEO

I’ve just completed two weeks of jury duty. It was the second time in eleven years I’ve served; I was never summonsed during the first 30 years of my residency. I am appreciative my employer, the KBF, has a very accommodative policy related to jury duty for its employees.

Jury duty is a responsibility for which most citizens have ambivalence. On the one hand we dread the inconvenience and the absence from our daily jobs and routines. On the other hand we recognize the vital importance of the process in facilitating the equitable administration of justice in our community to our fellow citizens – and – we must confess, if we were party to a lawsuit, we would want the jury to include people like ourselves deciding the outcome.

I was selected to serve on the jury of a guardianship case in which we, the jury, had to determine whether or not to take away from an individual all or part of his rights in his personal and financial affairs. What an awesome responsibility that was!

My experience on this jury confirmed everything we in the KBF do to educate, encourage and enable individuals and families to put a plan in place and to execute the necessary document(s) BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE to avoid the human and final trauma and cost associated with the court procedure required for a guardianship trial.

The key document is a power of attorney by which you grant someone of your choosing the power to make personal and/or financial decisions in your behalf should you be temporarily or permanently unable to make those decisions for yourself.

There are three ways the KBF can provide educational assistance in this realm of advance planning: (1) private consultation, (2) provide a brochure on “the right to make informed decisions” and (2) an educational seminar in your church.

Please call us toll free to make the arrangements for a private personal consultation session, request the brochure and/or schedule a seminar for your church or church group. 

For more information, please call us at (502) 489-3533 or toll free in KY at 1-(866) 489-3533

The information in this article is provided as general information and is not intended as legal or tax advice. For advice and assistance in specific cases, you should seek the advice of an attorney or other professional adviser.