OKLAHOMA CITY (April 20, 2007) – The Oklahoma Bar Association Board of Governors today voted to call on the governor to oppose final passage of Senate Bill 507 that deals with lawsuit reform. In its original form, the bill passed out of the state Senate as an attempt to correct constitutional infirmities in a bill passed in 2006 that required a certificate of merit before a malpractice suit could be filed against a medical provider.

A ruling last year by the Oklahoma Supreme Court held that such certificates of merit were unconstitutional because they offended Oklahoma state constitutional prohibitions against special legislation and barred access to the courts due to the large expense in obtaining the certifications. The version of SB 507 that has passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives underwent amendments in the House Judiciary and Public Safety Committee and on the floor of the House giving it much broader application. The bill passed in the Senate and was sent to the governor.

OBA President Stephen Beam of Weatherford said, “The bill caps damages, changes long-standing rules of civil procedure and even directs the Oklahoma Supreme Court to follow federal courts in interpreting the new statues. There is no evidence that such changes are needed nor is there any evidence that the public will be better served by the passage of this bill. The public is being told that something exists that is just not there. This bill has several problems, one of which restricts the rights of our citizens to have their damages ultimately decided by a jury.”

Oklahoma City attorney and OBA Vice President Jack Dawson said, “These types of statutes have passed in other states, and the only real effect is that insurance company profits go up, premiums do not always go down. This is a ploy to get the public to give up its rights to be justly compensated if injured so a select few can further profit.”

Beam said, “From what I am hearing from Oklahoma lawyers, the overwhelming majority of them oppose this legislation. Many of them do not even practice in areas affected by the bill, they just do not find it to be good public policy or constitutionally sound.”

The Board of Governors is the governing body of the Oklahoma Bar Association when its House of Delegates is not in session. The 15,000-member association, founded in 1904 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, was created by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to advance the administration of justice and to foster and maintain learning, integrity, competence, public service and high standards of conduct among Oklahoma's legal community.