Sarah Sloan Reeves - Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC

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 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 member 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 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 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.

Health Care: 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.

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.

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.

Related Practices: Business Services

Estate Planning & Administration

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

Related Practices: Business Services, Tax, Real Estate, Equine Transactional

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.

Related Practices: Mineral & Environmental Law