Vol. 3 No. 6 | Feb. 8, 2023

Courts

No published opinions this week

No published opinions this week

Dispositions Other than by Published Opinions

The Supreme Court of Oklahoma Court Calendar

The Supreme Court of Oklahoma is in session year round, unless otherwise noted. The Court regularly schedules conferences on Mondays and other days as needed.

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"The Oklahoma Supreme Court has both appellate jurisdiction and original jurisdiction flowing from Article VII, Section 4 of the Oklahoma Constitution. The Supreme Court’s original jurisdiction provides 'general superintending control over all inferior courts and all Agencies, Commissions and Boards created by law.' Outside of the appellate process, the Supreme Court’s original jurisdiction allows the court to examine a broad swath of proceedings. The Supreme Court often uses the term original action to refer to these proceedings, and original actions encompass filings seeking writs for mandamus, prohibition, habeas corpus, certiorari and quo warranto. The court also invokes its original jurisdiction for attorney discipline matters and where the Legislature has given the court exclusive original jurisdiction, like initiative and referendum petitions and bond and contract approval. For parties or attorneys filing original actions before the Supreme Court, this article lays out the more common grounds for original actions and examines the court’s rules on original actions, providing a few tips to consider before filing."

"February: our short and sweet month. Also, literally sweet. I can already see the images of chocolates, fruit bouquets and sweet-smelling flowers filling offices. Although considered to be a romantic holiday, we probably all had the common Valentine’s Day tradition of sending little cards to fellow classmates since learning to tie our shoes. Valentine’s Day is not just for romance but also to show care and compassion. Why not make the OBA your valentine by engaging as a member?

I think a handful (or more) of young lawyers do not know how to become more engaged. I know in law school, I thought of the OBA as CLE requirements and the ethics counsel. The OBA also has committees and sections with involvement opportunities. Joining a committee or section offers the ability to engage in issues affecting both our clients and members within our association. For example, the Access to Justice Committee is a wonderful committee for any lawyer who wants to learn about critical problems currently facing clients. Likewise, discussions abound regarding how lawyers may better serve those limited in their abilities to retain services. For example, in the past, the Access to Justice Committee focused on the ability for limited-scope practice to occur for those with limited resources to retain an attorney."

"As you have seen in this appellate-law-themed Oklahoma Bar Journal, there are rules, case law and more rules to follow with appellate procedure. This month’s theme, coupled with a new year and my new role as executive director, made me think more about creating my own rules to follow – in both my personal and professional life. Something more than just New Year’s resolutions, more than a mantra about the power of presence. Something more related to growth and effectiveness.

Thus, I am challenging myself in 2023 with some of Stephen Covey’s principles in mind: I want to create rules that will become healthy habits. After much thought, I think I have a decent start; I thought if I shared with the masses, it would add some accountability. So here it goes!"

Judge Deanna Hartley-Kelso, Chickasaw Nation district judge and assistant professor of business administration at East Central University, will serve as 2023 OBF president. During her year as president, Judge Hartley-Kelso, who graduated from the TU College of Law, plans to continue facilitating growth for the OBF, increase public awareness of the OBF mission and build connections with Oklahoma's underserved communities.

In honor of Black History Month, check out the May 2021 issue of the Oklahoma Bar Journal, which centered on Black Legal History in Oklahoma. In July of last year, this issue of the journal was presented with one of eight ABA Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts in the magazine category. This issue features articles on Oklahoma's pioneering Black attorneys, Ada Lois Sipuel v. Board of Regents, the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre in Tulsa's Greenwood District and much more. Take a look!

Blazing the Trail: Oklahoma Pioneer African American Attorneys
By John G. Browning

'As Soon As' Three Simple Words That Crumbled Graduate School Segregation: Ada Lois Sipuel v. Board of Regents
By Cheryl Brown Wattley

Guinn v. U.S.: States' Rights and the 15th Amendment
By Anthony Hendricks

The Tulsa Race Massacre: Echoes of 1921 Felt a Century Later
By John G. Browning

Oklahoma's Embrace of the White Racial Identity
By Danne L. Johnson & Pamela Juarez

Membership Reminders: One Week Left!

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Dues are due!

The deadline to pay your OBA 2023 membership dues without a late fee is Wednesday, Feb 15. Paper statements were recently mailed to those who have not yet paid. Please make your dues payment today! Visit MyOKBar to remit dues online.

MCLE deadline approaching.

The deadline to earn your required credit for 2022 was Dec. 31. The deadline to report your earned credit or a qualified exemption for 2022 is Feb. 15. Unless you are reporting an exemption, the minimum annual requirement is 10 general credits and two ethics credits, for a total of 12 credits. All credit must be OK MCLE approved. Please let us know how we can help you. Visit www.okmcle.org for more information.

Featured CLE

Presented By Jim Calloway, OBA Management Assistance Program Director

This short video will help you understand how to use the Microsoft Word format painter – a helpful tool that lets you copy character and paragraph formats and paste them to existing text. This is a great tip for lawyers who create formatted documents. Have more tech questions? Oklahoma Bar Association Management Assistance Program Director Jim Calloway has answers! Check out his Law Practice Tips Blog for more.

The Oklahoma Bar Journal is a publication of the Oklahoma Bar Association. All rights reserved. Copyright© 2023 Oklahoma Bar Association. Statements or opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff. Although advertising copy is reviewed, no endorsement of any product or service offered by any advertisement is intended or implied by publication. Advertisers are solely responsible for the content of their ads, and the OBA reserves the right to edit or reject any advertising copy for any reason. Legal articles carried in The Oklahoma Bar Journal are selected by the Board of Editors. Information about submissions can be found at www.okbar.org.