Persons having claims against the plaintiff may be joined as defendants and required to interplead when their claims are such that the plaintiff is or may be exposed to double or multiple liability. It is not ground for objection to the joinder that the claims of the several claimants or the titles on which their claims depend do not have a common origin or are not identical but are adverse to and independent of one another, or that the plaintiff avers that he is not liable in whole or in part to any or all the claimants. A defendant exposed to similar liability may obtain such interpleader by way of cross claim or counterclaim. The provisions of this section supplement and do not in any way limit the joinder of parties permitted in Rule 20.
Rule 22.Interpleader.
Current through June 18, 2026 · Last verified July 9, 2026
In one sentenceRule 22 lets a plaintiff facing rival claims to the same money or property join all the competing claimants as defendants and force them to litigate entitlement among themselves, and gives a defendant facing the same risk the same tool by way of cross-claim or counterclaim, without requiring the claims to share a common origin.
Full Text of Rule 22
Amendment History
The source reproduced here (current through June 18, 2026) records no amendment to this rule since its original adoption — no History line appears for it in the compiled rules. For the underlying adopting order and any later amendments, see the West’s Rules & Procedures.
Plain-English Summary
Interpleader addresses a specific problem: someone holds money or property that more than one person claims a right to, and paying or delivering it to the wrong claimant could mean paying twice. Rule 22 lets that person, typically the plaintiff, join every rival claimant as a defendant and require them to interplead, meaning they litigate among themselves over who is entitled to the fund or property, instead of each pursuing separate claims against the person caught in the middle.
The claimants do not need to be making the same kind of claim, or claims that trace back to the same source. Rule 22 allows interpleader even when the claims, or the titles the claims are based on, come from different origins, are not identical, or are adverse to and independent of one another. It is also no objection that the plaintiff denies owing anything to any or all of the claimants. A defendant who faces the same risk of double or multiple liability can raise interpleader too, by cross-claim or counterclaim rather than as an original plaintiff. Rule 22 supplements the joinder of parties allowed under Rule 20 rather than limiting it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is interpleader under Kentucky Rule 22?
Interpleader lets someone facing competing claims to the same money or property join all the claimants as defendants and require them to litigate their entitlement against each other, rather than pursuing separate claims against the person holding the fund or property.
Do the competing claims have to be related to use interpleader?
No. Rule 22 allows interpleader even when the claims, or the titles they depend on, do not share a common origin, are not identical, and are adverse to and independent of one another.
Can only a plaintiff use interpleader, or can a defendant too?
A defendant exposed to the same risk of double or multiple liability can obtain interpleader as well, by way of cross-claim or counterclaim.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure (Ky. R. Civ. P. 22). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Kentucky (Ky. Const. § 116). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 9, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: what is interpleadersued twice for the same debtcompeting claims to the same propertyCR 22 Kentuckycross-claim interpleaderdouble liability lawsuit