A uniform law or act (uniform law) seeks to establish the same law on a subject among states or other jurisdictions. Uniform laws are typically drafted by the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) and must be considered and enacted by each state or other jurisdiction that wishes to incorporate the uniform law’s provisions in its statutes. Uniformity of provisions among various states is a principal objective of uniform laws, and the ULC strives to “provide states with non-partisan, well-conceived and well-drafted legislation that brings clarity and stability to critical areas of state statutory law.”
In addition to drafting uniform laws, the ULC also drafts model acts, where uniformity of provisions among states is not a principal objective, but uniformity may still be promoted even though many jurisdictions may not adopt the act in its entirety.
Uniform Law Commission
The ULC, also known as the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, was founded in 1892. It is a nonprofit, unincorporated association of state commissions on uniform laws from each state, as well as the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the
U.S. Virgin Islands. Members (commissioners) must be lawyers, and include practicing attorneys, judges, legislators, legislative staff, and law professors.
The ULC states its purpose “is to promote uniformity in state law when uniformity is desirable and practicable.” The ULC has produced over 300 uniform and model acts on subjects including commerce, family and domestic relations, real estate transactions, trusts and estates, alternative dispute resolution, and other topics.
Kansas joined the ULC in 1893. Kansas statute (KSA 46-407a) established an Advisory Committee on Uniform State Laws. The Committee is required to advise the Kansas Commission on Interstate Cooperation through its duty to investigate and consider the advisability or uniformity of the laws of the several states. The Committee may make recommendations on subjects where uniformity “may be desirable and practical.”
The statute further provides for five representatives to the ULC, as follows:
- Three representatives who are members of the Kansas bar, appointed by the Kansas Commission on Interstate Cooperation, with the advice of the president of the Kansas Bar Association;
- The chairperson of the House Committee on Judiciary; and
- The chairperson of the Senate Committee on Judiciary.Because ULC members must be lawyers, the statute provides that, if the chairperson of either judiciary committee is not a member of the Kansas bar, then the chairperson may designate another member of the committee who is a member of the Kansas bar to serve instead. If no member of the committee is a member of the Kansas bar, then the Revisor of Statutes may be designated to serve instead, and the Revisor of Statutes may designate an assistant revisor to serve.
Current Uniform Laws in KansasThe 2026 General Index to the Kansas Statutes Annotated lists over 40 different uniform laws in Kansas statutes. Some of the more widely adopted uniform acts that have been adopted in Kansas include the following: - Uniform Commercial Code (KSA Chapter 84), which is a comprehensive set of laws governing all commercial transactions in the United States, including sales of goods, leases, negotiable instruments, bank deposits and collections, funds transfers, letters of credit, documents of title, investment securities, and secured transactions;
- Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (KSA 65-3220, et seq.), which governs organ donation;
- Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (KSA 23-37,101, et seq.), which limits the state with jurisdiction over child custody to one, to avoid competing orders;
- Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (KSA 16-1601, et seq.), which removes barriers to electronic commerce by establishing the legal equivalence of electronic records and signatures with paper writings and manually signed signatures;
- Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (KSA 23-36,101, et seq.), which allows enforcement of child support orders issued by an out-of-state court;
- Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act (KSA 58-3611, et seq.), which governs management of funds donated to charitable institutions in accordance with modern investment and expenditure practice;
- Uniform Trade Secrets Act (KSA 60-3320, et seq.), which governs trade secret protection;
- Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (KSA 38-1701, et seq.), which governs property transfers to a custodian for the benefit of a minor; and
- Uniform Trust Code (KSA 58a-101, et seq.), which governs codification of the common law on trusts.
Kansas may not have adopted the most recent revisions or amendments to the Uniform Acts listed above.