John v. Saint Francis Hospital, Inc.

2017 OK 81, 405 P.3d 681, 2017 WL 4785324, 2017 Okla. LEXIS 85
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 24, 2017
DocketCase Number: 115620
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 2017 OK 81 (John v. Saint Francis Hospital, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
John v. Saint Francis Hospital, Inc., 2017 OK 81, 405 P.3d 681, 2017 WL 4785324, 2017 Okla. LEXIS 85 (Okla. 2017).

Opinion

Colbert, J.

¶ 1 The dispositive issue on appeal is whether the thrice incarnated affidavit of merit requirement found in Okla. Stat. tit. 12, 19.1 (SuppV 2013), is unconstitutional. In the wake of Zeier v. Zimmer, 2006 OK 98, 152 P.3d 861, its sequel Wall v. Marouk, 2013 OK 36, 302 P.3d 775, and upon reexamination of the Oklahoma Constitution, the inevitable conclusion is that section 19.1 is an impermissible barrier to court access and an unconstitutional special law. Section 19.1 is stricken.

I.

PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

¶2 On October 30, 2012, Saint Francis Hospital, Inc., Neurological Surgery, Inc., and Douglas Koontz, M.D. (collectively Petitioners) performed decompressive laminecto-mies of Respondent’s, Johnson John (Patient), spine at the C2-3, C3-4, C4-5, C5-6 and C6-7 regions. After the operation, Patient allegedly became partially paralyzed, suffered constant pain, was hospitalized for four months and submitted to additional medical treatment.

¶3 Patient filed this suit against Appellants on May 31, 2016, alleging negligence, gross negligence, medical malpractice and seeking punitive-damages for Appellants’ failure to render reasonable medical care, breach of,the.duty of care owed and Patient’s resulting injuries. In commencing the action, Patient failed to attach an affidavit of merit to the Petition or otherwise comply with Okla. Stat. tit. 12, 19.1. 1 That is, Patient did not attach an affidavit attesting that Patient: (1) consulted and reviewed the facts of the claim .with a qualified expert, (2) had obtained a written opinion from a qualified expert which included a determination that a reasonable interpretation of the facts support a finding that defendants’ actions or omissions constituted negligence and (3) had con-.eluded, on the basis of the review and consultation with the qualified expert, that the claim was meritorious and based on good cause. See id.

¶ 4 On June 23, 2016, Appellants, in lieu of answer, filed their respective motions to dismiss and asserted, among other things, Patient’s failure to include the statutorily required affidávit of merit or, in the alternative, obtain a statutorily recognized exception. On July 8, 2016, Patient averred that the statutory, directive unconstitutionally restrained a litigant’s right to access the courts and was an unconstitutional special law. On August 5, 2016, the district court provided notice to the Attorney General’s office concerning the challenged statute. As intervenor, the Attorney General, filed its notice to the court and supplemental authority on October 11, 2016, essentially urging the district court to enforce the affidavit requirements.

¶ 6 After hearing arguments and reviewing the parties’ submissions, the district court overruled Appellants’ motions to dismiss. In doing so, the district court rejected Patient’s special law challenge but determined that,

section 19.1 unconstitutionally imposes a substantial and impermissible impediment to access to the courts. This barrier is unconstitutional regardless of the financial worth of a litigant and is not cured by excusing the indigent from this burden.

¶6 The district court certified its ruling pursuant to Okla. Stat. tit. 12, 962(b)(3), 2 finding that its order affected a substantial portion of the underlying action and materially advanced the ultimate determination of the litigation. 3 The district court then acknowledged the inconsistent application of section 19.1 among the district courts statewide; and further urged this Court’s immediate review. 4 Likewise, the district court acknowledged section 19.1’s potentially sweeping stroke on civil. negligence actions requiring expert testimony and this Court’s response declaring similar provisions unconstitutional on two separate occasions.

¶ 7 Appellants requested a stay of the district court proceedings pending the outcome of this appeal. That request, however, was denied as section 19.1 was unavailable for application to Patient’s case. Appellants sought review,' which this Court previously granted.

II.

■STANDARD OF REVIEW

¶8 At issue is the constitutionality and application of Okla) Stat. tit. 12, 19.1. A statute’s constitutional validity, construction and application are legal questions this Court reviews de novo. See Gilbert v. Sec. Fin. Corp. of Okla., Inc., 2006 OK 58, ¶ 2, 152 P.3d 165, 171. In doing so, this Court assumes “plenary independent and non-deferential authority to reexamine a trial court’s legal rulings.” Kluver v. Weatherford Hosp. Auth., 1993 OK 85, ¶ 14, 859 P.2d 1081, 1084.

¶ 9 Determining the - constitutionality of section 19.1 is this Court’s sole prerogative. Douglas v. Cox Ret. Prop,, Inc„ 2013 OK 37, ¶ 3, 302 P.3d 789. Thé policy rational, propriety or desirability of section 19.1, however, is not. Id.

III.

DISCUSSION

A. Prior Enactments and .Decisions

¶ 10 At the outset, this Court acknowledges that section 19.1 is the Legislature’s third . attempt to. mandate an affidavit requirement as an indispensable, step in the pleading process for certain civil actions. Pursuant to statute, adjudication cannot occur if the plaintiff fails to attach the requisite affidavit to the petition. The first constitutional challenge to the affidavit requirement came in Zeier v. Zimmer, 2006 OK 98, 152 P.3d 861. There, the law singled out medical negligence actions from the garden-variety negligence class and imposed stricter pleading requirements only applicable to actions naming medical professionals as defendants. Id. at ¶ 14, 152 P.3d at 867; see also Okla. Stat. tit. 63,1-1708.1E (Supp. 2003) (repealed by 2009 Okla. Sess. Laws, 87, c. 228). As a precursor to filing a medical malpractice action, a plaintiff had to attach an affidavit to the petition stating that the plaintiff:

1) has consulted with a qualified expert; 2) has obtained a written opinion from a qualified expert that the facts presented eonsti-tute professional negligence; and 3) has determined, on the basis of the expert’s opinion, that the malpractice claim is meritorious and based on good cause.

Zeier, ¶ 8, 152 P.3d at 865. Such requirements were a step-back from and altered the more streamlined Oklahoma Pleading Code the Legislature enacted in 1984. Okla. Stat. tit. 12, 2008. Contrary to the enactment, the Code does not require a plaintiff to set out detailed facts upon which a claim is based. Rather, a plaintiff was merely required to provide “fair notice of the [... ] claim and the grounds upon which it rests.” Zeier, 14, 152 P.3d at 867. Oklahoma’s adoption of the Code is consistent with this State’s constitutional directive mandating uniform procedures for all citizens of the’ state and equal access to legal institutions. Id. ¶ 18, 152 P.3d at 868.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

McCLEARY v. NEXSTAR MEDIA GROUP
2025 OK CIV APP 40 (Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma, 2025)
MARSHALL v. CITY OF TULSA
2024 OK 78 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2024)
BAYOUTH v. DEWBERRY
2024 OK 42 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2024)
COLE v. BANK OF AMERICA
2022 OK 96 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2022)
COOK v. MCGRAW DAVISSON STEWART
2021 OK CIV APP 32 (Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma, 2021)
SHAWAREB v. SSM HEALTH CARE OF OKLAHOMA
2020 OK 92 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2020)
Traylor v. State
213 A.3d 467 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2019)
WELLS v. OKLAHOMA ROOFING & SHEET METAL
2019 OK 45 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2019)
BEASON v. I. E. MILLER SERVICES, INC.
2019 OK 28 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2019)
MULLENDORE v. MERCY HOSPITAL ARDMORE
2019 OK 11 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2019)
McGehee v. Southwest Electronic Energy
908 F.3d 619 (Tenth Circuit, 2018)
GENTGES v. OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD
2018 OK 39 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2018)
Lind v. Barnes Tag Agency, Inc.
418 P.3d 698 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2018)
LIND v. BARNES TAG AGENCY
2018 OK 35 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2018)
JOHN v. SAINT FRANCIS HOSPITAL
2017 OK 81 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2017)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2017 OK 81, 405 P.3d 681, 2017 WL 4785324, 2017 Okla. LEXIS 85, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/john-v-saint-francis-hospital-inc-okla-2017.