Matt Bevin listens during a court hearing in Louisville on March 21, 2025. (Photo by Michael Clevenger, Courier Journal, via press pool)
A Court of Appeals judge has denied former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin’s request to prevent his adopted son, Jonah, from participating in his divorce settlement proceedings.
Bevin and Glenna Bevin finalized their divorce in March 2025, but a proposed settlement remains pending as Jonah seeks to intervene. The 19-year-old argues he was neglected, denied an education and sent to an abusive residential center in Jamaica at age 17, according to previous reports.
In January, Bevin asked the Court of Appeals to overturn Jefferson Family Court Judge Angela Johnson’s decision allowing Jonah to intervene in any settlement reached between the Bevins.
For the appeals court to grant emergency relief, Bevin would have needed to demonstrate “something of a ruinous nature,” according to Friday’s ruling. Court of Appeals Judge Christopher McNeill wrote that “this high burden has not been met.”
“Matthew asserts that he, and the Bevin family, will be irreparably harmed if the March 27, 2026, hearing is allowed to proceed because it will unduly delay the conclusion of his divorce, it ‘will cause unwarranted public attention and scrutiny regarding private family issues,’ and any order awarding Jonah attorney’s fees is not supported by Kentucky law,” the ruling states.
Bevin also “asserts that Jonah’s requests for his and Glenna’s financial disclosures and to schedule their depositions are nothing more than a fishing expedition,” court documents show. He further raised concerns that depositions could open the door to interviews “with no guardrails.”
“These allegations concern Jonah’s ability to conduct discovery, and at this juncture, are pure speculation,” McNeill wrote. “The family court has not ruled on whether Matthew and Glenna must produce their unredacted financial disclosures, or whether they are required to sit for a deposition.” The order adds that fears of “danger” do not meet the legal standard for irreparable harm.
Addressing privacy concerns, McNeill noted that divorce records are generally public unless a family court orders them sealed. “Thus, this injury would be no different than that of every married couple who files for divorce,” the ruling states.
In a footnote, he added: “Matthew did not cite to, nor is this Court aware of, an exception because Matthew is a public figure.”
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