Civil procedure; enacting the Uniform Collaborative Law Act; effective date.

An Act

ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 2117 By: Kannady of the House

and

Howard of the Senate

An Act relating to civil procedure; enacting the
Uniform Collaborative Law Act; defining terms;
providing for applicability of act; specifying
requirements of collaborative law participation
agreements; providing for beginning and ending of
collaborative law process; requiring notice;
providing for termination with or without cause;
providing for continuation of collaborative law
process under certain conditions; providing for
procedures before certain tribunals; prescribing
procedures; providing for status report; providing
for issuance of emergency orders; authorizing
approval of certain agreements; providing procedures
related to disqualification of attorneys; providing
for representation without fees; providing standard
for income qualifications; providing for
disqualification of attorneys representing
governmental entities; providing for disclosure of
information related to collaborative matters;
providing for inapplicability of act to certain
professional standards; imposing duties on attorney
with respect to collaborative law participation
agreements; requiring certain inquiry related to
coercive or violent relationships; prescribing
procedures; providing for confidentiality; providing
for privilege with respect to collaborative law
communications; providing for waiver of privilege;
limiting scope of privilege; providing for authority
of tribunal in case of noncompliance; providing for
uniform application; providing for effect of act with
respect to other laws; providing for codification;
and providing an effective date.

SUBJECT: Civil procedure
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:

SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3301 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

SHORT TITLE.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Uniform
Collaborative Law Act.

SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3302 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

DEFINITIONS.

As used in this act:

1. “Collaborative law communication” means a statement, whether
oral or in a record, or verbal or nonverbal, that:

a. is made to conduct, participate in, continue, or
reconvene a collaborative law process, and

b. occurs after the parties sign a collaborative law
participation agreement and before the collaborative
law process is concluded;

2. “Collaborative law participation agreement” means an
agreement by persons to participate in a collaborative law process;

3. “Collaborative law process” means a procedure intended to
resolve a collaborative matter without intervention by a tribunal in
which persons:

a. sign a collaborative law participation agreement, and

b. are represented by collaborative lawyers;

4. “Collaborative lawyer” means a lawyer who represents a party
in a collaborative law process;

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5. “Collaborative matter” means a dispute, transaction, claim,
problem, or issue for resolution, including a dispute, claim, or
issue in a proceeding, which is described in a collaborative law
participation agreement;

6. “Law firm” means:

a. lawyers who practice law together in a partnership,
professional corporation, sole proprietorship, limited
liability company, or association, and

b. lawyers employed in a legal services organization, or
the legal department of a corporation or other
organization, or the legal department of a government
or governmental subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality;

7. “Nonparty participant” means a person, other than a party
and the party’s collaborative lawyer, that participates in a
collaborative law process;

8. “Party” means a person that signs a collaborative law
participation agreement and whose consent is necessary to resolve a
collaborative matter;

9. “Person” means an individual, corporation, business trust,
estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association,
joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental
subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or
commercial entity;

10. “Proceeding” means:

a. a judicial, administrative, arbitral, or other
adjudicative process before a tribunal, including
related prehearing and post-hearing motions,
conferences, and discovery, or

b. a legislative hearing or similar process;

11. “Prospective party” means a person that discusses with a
prospective collaborative lawyer the possibility of signing a
collaborative law participation agreement;

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12. “Record” means information that is inscribed on a tangible
medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is
retrievable in perceivable form;

13. “Related to a collaborative matter” means involving the
same parties, transaction or occurrence, nucleus of operative fact,
dispute, claim, or issue as the collaborative matter;

14. “Sign” means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt
a record:

a. to execute or adopt a tangible symbol, or

b. to attach to or logically associate with the record an
electronic symbol, sound, or process; and

15. “Tribunal” means:

a. a court, arbitrator, administrative agency, or other
body acting in an adjudicative capacity which, after
presentation of evidence or legal argument, has
jurisdiction to render a decision affecting a party’s
interests in a matter, or

b. a legislative body conducting a hearing or similar
process.

SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3303 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

APPLICABILITY.

This act applies to a collaborative law participation agreement
that meets the requirements of Section 4 of this act signed on or
after the effective date of this act.

SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3304 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

COLLABORATIVE LAW PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT; REQUIREMENTS.

A. A collaborative law participation agreement must:

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1. Be in a record;

2. Be signed by the parties;

3. State the parties’ intention to resolve a collaborative
matter through a collaborative law process under this act;

4. Describe the nature and scope of the matter;

5. Identify the collaborative lawyer who represents each party
in the process; and

6. Contain a statement by each collaborative lawyer confirming
the lawyer’s representation of a party in the collaborative law
process.

B. Parties may agree to include in a collaborative law
participation agreement additional provisions not inconsistent with
this act.

SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3305 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

BEGINNING AND CONCLUDING COLLABORATIVE LAW PROCESS.

A. A collaborative law process begins when the parties sign a
collaborative law participation agreement.

B. A tribunal may not order a party to participate in a
collaborative law process over that party’s objection.

C. A collaborative law process is concluded by a:

1. Resolution of a collaborative matter as evidenced by a
signed record;

2. Resolution of a part of the collaborative matter, evidenced
by a signed record, in which the parties agree that the remaining
parts of the matter will not be resolved in the process; or

3. Termination of the process.

D. A collaborative law process terminates:

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1. When a party gives notice to other parties in a record that
the process is ended;

2. When a party:

a. begins a proceeding related to a collaborative matter
without the agreement of all parties, or

b. in a pending proceeding related to the matter:

(1) initiates a pleading, motion, order to show
cause, or request for a conference with the
tribunal,

(2) requests that the proceeding be put on the
tribunal’s active calendar, or

(3) takes similar action requiring notice to be sent
to the parties; or

3. Except as otherwise provided by subsection G of this
section, when a party discharges a collaborative lawyer or a
collaborative lawyer withdraws from further representation of a
party.

E. A party’s collaborative lawyer shall give prompt notice to
all other parties in a record of a discharge or withdrawal.

F. A party may terminate a collaborative law process with or
without cause.

G. Notwithstanding the discharge or withdrawal of a
collaborative lawyer, a collaborative law process continues, if not
later than thirty (30) days after the date that the notice of the
discharge or withdrawal of a collaborative lawyer required by
subsection E of this section is sent to the parties:

1. The unrepresented party engages a successor collaborative
lawyer; and

2. In a signed record:

a. the parties consent to continue the process by
reaffirming the collaborative law participation
agreement,
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b. the agreement is amended to identify the successor
collaborative lawyer, and

c. the successor collaborative lawyer confirms the
lawyer’s representation of a party in the
collaborative process.

H. A collaborative law process does not conclude if, with the
consent of the parties, a party requests a tribunal to approve a
resolution of the collaborative matter or any part thereof as
evidenced by a signed record.

I. A collaborative law participation agreement may provide
additional methods of concluding a collaborative law process.

SECTION 6. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3306 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

PROCEEDINGS PENDING BEFORE TRIBUNAL; STATUS REPORT.

A. Persons in a proceeding pending before a tribunal may sign a
collaborative law participation agreement to seek to resolve a
collaborative matter related to the proceeding. The parties shall
file promptly with the tribunal a notice of the agreement after it
is signed. Subject to subsection C of this section and Sections 7
and 8 of this act, the filing operates as an application for a stay
of the proceeding.

B. The parties shall file promptly with the tribunal notice in
a record when a collaborative law process concludes. The stay of
the proceeding under subsection A of this section is lifted when the
notice is filed. The notice may not specify any reason for
termination of the process.

C. A tribunal in which a proceeding is stayed under subsection
A of this section may require the parties and collaborative lawyers
to provide a status report on the collaborative law process and the
proceeding. A status report may include only information on whether
the process is ongoing or concluded. It may not include a report,
assessment, evaluation, recommendation, finding, or other
communication regarding a collaborative law process or collaborative
law matter.

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D. A tribunal may not consider a communication made in
violation of subsection C of this section.

E. A tribunal shall provide parties notice and an opportunity
to be heard before dismissing a proceeding in which a notice of
collaborative process is filed based on delay or failure to
prosecute.

SECTION 7. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3307 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

EMERGENCY ORDER.

During a collaborative law process, a tribunal may issue
emergency orders to protect the health, safety, welfare, or interest
of a party or family or household member authorized to seek a
protective order pursuant to the Protection from Domestic Abuse Act.

SECTION 8. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3308 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

APPROVAL OF AGREEMENT BY TRIBUNAL.

A tribunal may approve an agreement resulting from a
collaborative law process.

SECTION 9. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3309 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

DISQUALIFICATION OF COLLABORATIVE LAWYER AND LAWYERS IN
ASSOCIATED LAW FIRM.

A. Except as otherwise provided in subsection C of this
section, a collaborative lawyer is disqualified from appearing
before a tribunal to represent a party in a proceeding related to
the collaborative matter.

B. Except as otherwise provided in subsection C of this section
and Sections 10 and 11 of this act, a lawyer in a law firm with
which the collaborative lawyer is associated is disqualified from
appearing before a tribunal to represent a party in a proceeding
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related to the collaborative matter if the collaborative lawyer is
disqualified from doing so under subsection A of this section.

C. A collaborative lawyer or a lawyer in a law firm with which
the collaborative lawyer is associated may represent a party:

1. To ask a tribunal to approve an agreement resulting from the
collaborative law process; or

2. To seek or defend an emergency order to protect the health,
safety, welfare, or interest of a party, or a family or household
member authorized to seek a protective order pursuant to the
Protection from Domestic Abuse Act, if a successor lawyer is not
immediately available to represent that person.

D. If paragraph 2 of subsection C of this section applies, a
collaborative lawyer, or lawyer in a law firm with which the
collaborative lawyer is associated, may represent a party or family
or household member only until the person is represented by a
successor lawyer or reasonable measures are taken to protect the
health, safety, welfare, or interest of the person.

SECTION 10. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3310 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

LOW INCOME PARTIES.

A. The disqualification of subsection A of Section 9 of this
act applies to a collaborative lawyer representing a party with or
without fee.

B. After a collaborative law process concludes, another lawyer
in a law firm with which a collaborative lawyer disqualified under
subsection A of Section 9 of this act is associated may represent a
party without fee in the collaborative matter or a matter related to
the collaborative matter if:

1. The party has an annual income that qualifies the party for
free legal representation under the criteria established by the law
firm for free legal representation;

2. The collaborative law participation agreement so provides;
and

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3. The collaborative lawyer is isolated from any participation
in the collaborative matter or a matter related to the collaborative
matter through procedures within the law firm which are reasonably
calculated to isolate the collaborative lawyer from such
participation.

SECTION 11. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3311 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY AS PARTY.

A. The disqualification of subsection A of Section 9 of this
act applies to a collaborative lawyer representing a party that is a
government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality.

B. After a collaborative law process concludes, another lawyer
in a law firm with which the collaborative lawyer is associated may
represent a government or governmental subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality in the collaborative matter or a matter related to
the collaborative matter if:

1. The collaborative law participation agreement so provides;
and

2. The collaborative lawyer is isolated from any participation
in the collaborative matter or a matter related to the collaborative
matter through procedures within the law firm which are reasonably
calculated to isolate the collaborative lawyer from such
participation.

SECTION 12. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3312 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.

Except as provided by law other than this act, during the
collaborative law process, on the request of another party, a party
shall make timely, full, candid, and informal disclosure of
information related to the collaborative matter without formal
discovery. A party also shall update promptly previously disclosed
information that has materially changed. The parties may define the
scope of disclosure during the collaborative law process.

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SECTION 13. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3313 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND MANDATORY REPORTING
NOT AFFECTED.

This act does not affect:

1. The professional responsibility obligations and standards
applicable to a lawyer or other licensed professional; or

2. The obligation of a person to report abuse or neglect,
abandonment, or exploitation of a child or adult under the law of
this state.

SECTION 14. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3314 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

APPROPRIATENESS OF COLLABORATIVE LAW PROCESS.

Before a prospective party signs a collaborative law
participation agreement, a prospective collaborative lawyer shall:

1. Assess with the prospective party factors the lawyer
reasonably believes relate to whether a collaborative law process is
appropriate for the prospective party’s matter;

2. Provide the prospective party with information that the
lawyer reasonably believes is sufficient for the party to make an
informed decision about the material benefits and risks of a
collaborative law process as compared to the material benefits and
risks of other reasonably available alternatives for resolving the
proposed collaborative matter, such as litigation, mediation,
arbitration, or expert evaluation; and

3. Advise the prospective party that:

a. after signing an agreement if a party initiates a
proceeding or seeks tribunal intervention in a pending
proceeding related to the collaborative matter, the
collaborative law process terminates,

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b. participation in a collaborative law process is
voluntary and any party has the right to terminate
unilaterally a collaborative law process with or
without cause, and

c. the collaborative lawyer and any lawyer in a law firm
with which the collaborative lawyer is associated may
not appear before a tribunal to represent a party in a
proceeding related to the collaborative matter, except
as authorized by subsection C of Section 9 of this
act, subsection B of Section 10 of this act, or
subsection B of Section 11 of this act.

SECTION 15. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3315 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

COERCIVE OR VIOLENT RELATIONSHIP.

A. Before a prospective party signs a collaborative law
participation agreement, a prospective collaborative lawyer shall
make reasonable inquiry whether the prospective party has a history
of a coercive or violent relationship with another prospective
party.

B. Throughout a collaborative law process, a collaborative
lawyer reasonably and continuously shall assess whether the party
the collaborative lawyer represents has a history of a coercive or
violent relationship with another party.

C. If a collaborative lawyer reasonably believes that the party
the lawyer represents or the prospective party who consults the
lawyer has a history of a coercive or violent relationship with
another party or prospective party, the lawyer may not begin or
continue a collaborative law process unless:

1. The party or the prospective party requests beginning or
continuing a process; and

2. The collaborative lawyer reasonably believes that the safety
of the party or prospective party can be protected adequately during
a process.

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SECTION 16. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3316 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

CONFIDENTIALITY OF COLLABORATIVE LAW COMMUNICATION.

A collaborative law communication is confidential to the extent
agreed by the parties in a signed record or as provided by law of
this state other than this act.

SECTION 17. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3317 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

PRIVILEGE AGAINST DISCLOSURE FOR COLLABORATIVE LAW
COMMUNICATION; ADMISSIBILITY; DISCOVERY.

A. Subject to Sections 18 and 19 of this act, a collaborative
law communication is privileged under subsection B of this section,
is not subject to discovery, and is not admissible in evidence.

B. In a proceeding, the following privileges apply:

1. A party may refuse to disclose, and may prevent any other
person from disclosing, a collaborative law communication; and

2. A nonparty participant may refuse to disclose, and may
prevent any other person from disclosing, a collaborative law
communication of the nonparty participant.

C. Evidence or information that is otherwise admissible or
subject to discovery does not become inadmissible or protected from
discovery solely because of its disclosure or use in a collaborative
law process.

SECTION 18. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3318 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

WAIVER AND PRECLUSION OF PRIVILEGE.

A. A privilege under Section 17 of this act may be waived in a
record or orally during a proceeding if it is expressly waived by
all parties and, in the case of the privilege of a nonparty
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participant, it is also expressly waived by the nonparty
participant.

B. A person that makes a disclosure or representation about a
collaborative law communication which prejudices another person in a
proceeding may not assert a privilege under Section 17 of this act,
but this preclusion applies only to the extent necessary for the
person prejudiced to respond to the disclosure or representation.

SECTION 19. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3319 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

LIMITS OF PRIVILEGE.

A. There is no privilege under Section 17 of this act for a
collaborative law communication that is:

1. Available to the public under the Oklahoma Open Records Act
or made during a session of a collaborative law process that is
open, or is required by law to be open, to the public;

2. A threat or statement of a plan to inflict bodily injury or
commit a crime of violence;

3. Intentionally used to plan a crime, commit or attempt to
commit a crime, or conceal an ongoing crime or ongoing criminal
activity; or

4. In an agreement resulting from the collaborative law
process, evidenced by a record signed by all parties to the
agreement.

B. The privileges under Section 17 of this act for a
collaborative law communication do not apply to the extent that a
communication is:

1. Sought or offered to prove or disprove a claim or complaint
of professional misconduct or malpractice arising from or related to
a collaborative law process; or

2. Sought or offered to prove or disprove abuse, neglect,
abandonment, or exploitation of a child or adult, unless the
Department of Human Services is a party to or otherwise participates
in the process.
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C. There is no privilege under Section 17 of this act if a
tribunal finds, after a hearing in camera, that the party seeking
discovery or the proponent of the evidence has shown the evidence is
not otherwise available, the need for the evidence substantially
outweighs the interest in protecting confidentiality, and the
collaborative law communication is sought or offered in:

1. A court proceeding involving a felony or misdemeanor; or

2. A proceeding seeking rescission or reformation of a contract
arising out of the collaborative law process or in which a defense
to avoid liability on the contract is asserted.

D. If a collaborative law communication is subject to an
exception under subsection B or C of this section, only the part of
the communication necessary for the application of the exception may
be disclosed or admitted.

E. Disclosure or admission of evidence excepted from the
privilege under subsection B or C of this section does not make the
evidence or any other collaborative law communication discoverable
or admissible for any other purpose.

F. The privileges under Section 17 of this act do not apply if
the parties agree in advance in a signed record, or if a record of a
proceeding reflects agreement by the parties, that all or part of a
collaborative law process is not privileged. This subsection does
not apply to a collaborative law communication made by a person that
did not receive actual notice of the agreement before the
communication was made.

SECTION 20. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3320 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

AUTHORITY OF TRIBUNAL IN CASE OF NONCOMPLIANCE.

A. If an agreement fails to meet the requirements of Section 4
of this act, or a lawyer fails to comply with Section 14 or 15 of
this act, a tribunal may nonetheless find that the parties intended
to enter into a collaborative law participation agreement if they:

1. Signed a record indicating an intention to enter into a
collaborative law participation agreement; and
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2. Reasonably believed they were participating in a
collaborative law process.

B. If a tribunal makes the findings specified in subsection A
of this section, and the interests of justice require, the tribunal
may:

1. Enforce an agreement evidenced by a record resulting from
the process in which the parties participated;

2. Apply the disqualification provisions of Sections 5, 6, 9,
10, and 11 of this act; and

3. Apply a privilege under Section 17 of this act.

SECTION 21. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3321 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION.

In applying and construing this uniform act, consideration must
be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect
to its subject matter among states that enact it.

SECTION 22. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3322 of Title 12, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

RELATION TO ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES IN GLOBAL AND NATIONAL
COMMERCE ACT.

This act modifies, limits, and supersedes the federal Electronic
Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C., Section
7001 et seq., but does not modify, limit, or supersede Section
101(c) of that act, 15 U.S.C., Section 7001(c), or authorize
electronic delivery of any of the notices described in Section
103(b) of that act, 15 U.S.C., Section 7003(b).

SECTION 23. This act shall become effective January 1, 2026.

ENR. H. B. NO. 2117 Page 17
Passed the House of Representatives the 3rd day of March, 2025.

Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives

Passed the Senate the 7th day of May, 2025.

Presiding Officer of the Senate

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.

_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________