Plat

Plats - Without Planning Commissions

"A deed and a plat are two legal instruments that relate to each other. Therefore, it can be argued that many of the requirements for a deed are also requirements for a plat. Refer to OAG 83-237 ."..A deed is a present grant of an interest in real estate. 26 C.J.S, Deeds, § 1, pp. 581-582. The court said in Terrill v. Kentucky Block Cannel Coal Co., 290 Ky. 35, 160 SW2d 326 (1942), that if the effect of an instrument, regardless of what it is called, is to sever the estate and to vest title to a certain part of it in another, it is a deed. A deed to be valid must pass some present interest vesting in the grantee upon delivery thereof. Spicer v. Spicer, 314 Ky. 560, 236 SW2d 474 (1951). Of course, a deed, to be valid, must contain a description of the property to be conveyed. The test as to sufficiency of description in a deed is whether the land can actually be located therefrom. Casteel v. Pennington, 228 Ky. 206, 14 SW2d 753 (1929).

The statutes provide the following document requirements for a plat:

The plat cannot exceed 24 inches x 36 inches in size (KRS 100.283).
The plat requires the surveyor's certification, signed and dated and his seal. (KRS 322.400)
The statutes do not give additional specific requirements for plats, however the fact that a survey or plat describes the land, it is presumed that the survey or plat must have:
The owner's signed certification; signature must be notarized
Source of title

The purpose of a plat or survey is to provide a map of the property. Land Survey is defined in KRS 322.010. Part of the definition includes:

a. Determination or establishment of the facts of size, shape, topography, and acreage;
c. Subdivision, division and consolidation of lands;
f. Preparation of physical written description for use in legal instruments of conveyance or real property and property rights;
g. Preparation of subdivision record plats"

Plats With Planning Commission

KRS 100.283

"The County Clerk shall record plats after approval by the planning commission. The document must have the following:
The plat must have the approval of the planning commission and the commission's certification signed and dated. (KRS 100.277)
The plat requires the surveyor's certification, signed and dated and his seal. (KRS 322.400)
The plat cannot exceed 24 inches x 36 inches in size (KRS 100.283).
The statutes do not give additional specific requirements for plats, however the fact that a survey or plat describes the land, it is presumed that the survey or plat must have:
The owner's signature
Source of title

Planning commissions can provide additional regulations governing recording requirements, such as:

The size of the document may be smaller than the statute indicates.
Additional expenses can be charged if a planning commission is involved. For example: an expense fee for having the mylar reproduced as a blue line by the county engineer. Condominium plats may be required to go through the planning commission, in Fayette County this is a requirement for recording.

Revocation of subdivision plat

Per KRS 100.285 the statutes allow for the revocation of a subdivision plat if there is a planning commission: The requirements are as follows:

All persons owning land comprising a subdivision must apply to the planning commission, including all dedications of public facilities, easements and rights-of-way.
Before any plat shall be revoked, all owners shall, as part of their application for revocation, state under oath that no person has purchased a lot shown on the plat.
A revocation shall become effective only upon:
A notation on the margin of the recorded plat stating that such plat has been revoked and the date of such vote of revocation; such notation shall be signed by the chairman, secretary, or other duly authorized officer of the commission; and
A written approval of such revocation filed with the commission, duly signed by each entity to which an offer of dedication of any public or private facility, easement or right-of-way was made on the plat.
In today's environment notations on margins cannot be used if the medium for storage is digital or microfilmed. In these cases the county clerk must provide a method for linking the revocation plat with the original plat.
Additional expenses can be charged if a planning commission is involved. For example: an expense fee for having the mylar reproduced as a blue line by the county engineer."

Plats - Condominium (Floor Plans)

Effective January 1, 2011 KRS 381.914

"Plats and plans are a part of the declaration and must be filed at the same time

Separate plats and plans are not required if all the information required by this section is contained in either a plat or plan.

The plat or plan must be clear and legible The name and a survey or map of the entire condominium; A certified statement that the plat or plan contains all information required by KRS 381.9141 The owner’s signature A certification that the plat or plan was be made by a professional land surveyor, licensed architect, or professional engineer. The two certification statements may be combined into one statement if made by the same person."