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Sarah Sloan Reeves

Member , Lexington KY

859.231.3939

Sarah Sloan Reeves

Member , Lexington KY

Sarah is a Member in Stoll Keenon Ogden’s Lexington office and has been with the firm since 2010. She is part of the Business Services practice group and works primarily with clients in the Equine and Trust & Estates industries, though she assists clients of all types and sizes.

Sarah works primarily with racetracks, equine industry organizations, and prominent Thoroughbred owners and breeders on a variety of equine transactional matters as well as business succession and tax and estate planning. She represents many prominent Thoroughbred operations in Kentucky and throughout the world. Whether she’s advising a Thoroughbred owner or a client outside the equine industry, Sarah gets to know the client’s business from an inside counsel’s perspective — and often serves clients in this capacity. She’s always looking at how she can solve the complicated and often intimidating issues that clients face in a practical and efficient manner.

Sarah’s wide-ranging expertise allows her to serve as trusted counsel to her clients. She answers tax questions as readily and effectively as she handles real estate concerns. She helps clients plan for their futures, and she anticipates changes in the law that may impact their operations, such as federal and local licensing regulations.

Sarah serves as a Member of the Keeneland Advisory Board of Directors in addition to her role as Corporate Secretary of Keeneland. She is also corporate secretary of Breeders’ Cup Limited and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.

For her many legal achievements, Sarah has been recognized as Best Lawyer® for Commercial Transactions and a Rising Star by Kentucky Super Lawyers®.

In addition to her work with firm clients, Sarah is actively engaged in several local professional and community groups. She is a member of the Women Lawyers’ Association of the Fayette County Bar Association and is a former member (2020-2022) and Senior Warden (2022) of the Vestry of Christ Church Cathedral, in Lexington. Sarah lives in Lexington with her husband and two children.

Business Services: As part of her counsel to the racetrack and equine industry organizations, Sarah has been instrumental in advancing safety and integrity standards in the Thoroughbred industry. As counsel to Thoroughbred owners, breeders, and stallion farms, Sarah is regularly involved in the acquisition and sale of significant Thoroughbreds, including breeding interests. She also advises clients on the structuring of ownership of equine operations.

Trust & Estates: Sarah helps equine and other clients with closely held businesses prepare for succession and preservation of their businesses. She considers all operational areas of the business and provides a holistic yet focused approach to estate and tax planning and administration.

Equine Transactional: Sarah represents the Keeneland Association, Breeders’ Cup Limited, Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA), and National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), among other leading equine organizations. She negotiates and drafts agreements and advises on rules governing the conduct of racing and sales among other matters. She mostly offers support to entities in the Thoroughbred business but also advises on breeds such as Standardbreds and quarter horses.

Healthcare: In this complex area of law, Sarah keeps clients abreast of changes to help them maximize opportunities and reduce risk. She represents hospitals, physician groups, assisted living facilities, and various other industry entities.

Education

University of Kentucky College of Law, 2009, J.D., cum laude

City University, 2004, M.i.T

University of Kentucky, 2003, B.A., summa cum laude

Experience

Admitted In

  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit

  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Kentucky

  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Kentucky

  • Kentucky

Professional & Community Activities

  • Keeneland Association, Inc., Member of Advisory Board of Directors and Corporate Secretary, 2020-present

  • Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, Member

  • National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Member

  • Breeders’ Cup Limited, Corporate Secretary

  • Christ Church Cathedral, Vestry Member, 2020-present

  • Make-A-Wish® Kentucky, Member, Make-A-Wish® OKI Lexington Advisory Council; Member of Make-A-Wish OKI, Kentucky Regional Board, 2018-2021

  • American Bar Association

  • Kentucky Bar Association

  • Fayette County Bar Association

  • FCBA Women Lawyers’ Association

  • Central Kentucky Youth Orchestra, board member, 2013-2015

  • Leadership Lexington, 2012-2013

  • Junior Achievement, Fayette County Public Schools, volunteer teacher, 2011

  • FCBA Women Lawyers’ Association, committee chair, community service committee, 2011

  • The Kentucky Law Journal Association, Lexington, KY, president of the board of directors, 2010-2011

Accolades

  • Best Lawyers® 2024 Commercial Transactions / UCC Law “Lawyer of the Year’ in Lexington

  • The Best Lawyers in America®, Commercial Transactions / UCC Law, 2023

  • Kentucky Rising Stars® Honoree, 2019

  • Law clerk to the Honorable Eugene E. Siler Jr., Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit

  • Kentucky Law Journal, Editor-in-Chief

  • Order of the Coif

  • CALI Award for Academic Excellence in Federal Courts, 2009

  • Colvin P. Rouse Award

  • Donald A. Winslow Memorial Scholarship

  • Best Brief Award, Harlan Writing Club

  • Roy Moreland Scholarship

Work Highlights

  • Reorganization, Refinancing and Acquisition of Major Healthcare Entity

    Stoll Keenon Ogden represented a major healthcare services entity, its affiliated upstream and sister companies, its owners and its founding management team in comprehensive reorganization, refinancing and acquisition transactions totaling more than $300 million. The matters resulted in the closing of a senior secured term loan and revolving credit facilities secured by owned senior care facilities in four states with a 9-member syndicate of commercial banks; the requisition of waivers, consents and estoppels from various property lessors on leased senior care facilities in four states; restructuring of upstream holding companies and combination of two upstream ownership groups and boards of managers; the creation of a management company; the introduction of healthcare facility management agreements; the migration of payroll and benefits for more than 7,000 employees; the related restructuring of multiple lease and debt financing and supplier relationships; the creation and reorganization of multiple SPE organizations accompanied by extensive non-consolidation analysis and issuance of a substantive non-consolidation opinion to the lending syndicate; the exercise of purchase option and acquisition of multiple senior care facilities; the contribution of additional equity capital from the client’s majority owners; and the amendment and restructuring of multiple Master Lease and inter-creditor agreements.

  • Mergers & Acquisitions

    Family Business Succession Planning- Sale to Grantor Trusts- Charitable Planning
    Represented multi-generation family in planning for their family and estates after the sale of the family business, including preparing and/or implementing Delaware Trusts, a charitable lead annuity trust, limited liability companies, sale to dynasty trusts and valuation discounts as well as assisting in the administration of the estates of several family members after their unexpected deaths.

  • Estate Planning & Administration

    SKO administers the estates of notable horsewomen and horsemen and is actively involved in planning estates in the shifting economic climate.

  • Acquisition of Appalachian Oil and Natural Gas Properties

    Acquisition of 1.46 million oil and gas acres in eastern United States (primarily Pennsylvania and West Virginia) with more than 9,000 producing wells. SKO performed due diligence and prepared transaction documents.

Seminars

    • The Economics of Racehorse Ownership, Thoroughbred OwnerView Conference, panelist, 2021
    • Estate Planning for the Horse Owner, National Conference on Equine Law, UK/CLE, 2016
    • Understanding Charging Orders for Partnerships and LLCs, ALI Video Presentation, 2015
    • Protecting Assets: Charging Orders for Partnerships and LLCs, ALI Webinar, 2013
    • Equine Sales & Use Taxation, KyCPA Horsing Around Seminar, Lexington, KY, 2012
    • Ethics Issues for In-House Counsel: Vignettes to Ponder, Pts. 1 & 2, presented with Thomas E. Rutledge, A.J. Singleton and Allison J. Donovan, 22d Annual Issues for Corporate House Counsel CLE Seminar, 2012
    • Creditors’ Use of Charging Orders and Other Techniques, co-speaker, 13th Biennial Business Associations Law Institute, UK/CLE, 2011
    • A Clinic for Precise Writing, How-to-Guide for Publishing, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Kentucky, 2010
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