Members of the Oklahoma Senate have passed, by a supermajority margin, legislation that would prevent “jackpot” awards in Oklahoma courts while still allowing victims to receive full payment for medical treatment and lost income when injured due to another’s neglect.

Senate Bill 1065, by state Sen. Brent Howard, caps noneconomic-damages awards at $500,000. The bill allows unlimited awards for quantifiable economic damages, which can total millions, such as medical expenses and lifelong loss of income.

Howard noted Oklahoma will not be breaking new ground by capping noneconomic damages.

“Eight other states currently have that,” said Howard, R-Altus. “This $500,000 number would be right in the middle of that.”

In addition, 26 states cap noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases, he noted.

The bill’s language does not apply to actions brought under the Governmental Tort Claims Act or actions for wrongful death brought pursuant to Section 7 of Article XXIII of the Oklahoma Constitution, which states that damages cannot be capped in wrongful-death cases.

Furthermore, the cap would not apply in cases involving “reckless disregard for the rights of others, gross negligence, fraud, or intentional or malicious conduct.”

“The Economic and Fiscal Impact of Excessive Tort Costs on Oklahoma,” a study commissioned by the State Chamber Research Foundation and conducted by the Perryman Group, found that excessive tort costs have translated into the loss of $3.7 billion in state gross product each year and almost 32,000 jobs in Oklahoma.

The report found the associated decrease in tax receipts includes $195 million annually to the state and $162.5 million to local government entities.

Because large awards for unquantified non-economic damages have been shown to drive businesses away from states and hinder job creation and economic growth, Oklahoma lawmakers have sought to provide legal certainty by imposing caps on non-economic damages.

In 2011, Oklahoma legislators voted to impose a $350,000 cap on awards for noneconomic damages in many cases.

However, in a bizarre 2019 ruling, the Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down that law, declaring it a “special law” since the cap would apply in cases “where the plaintiff survives the injury-causing event, while persons who die from the injury-causing event face no such limitation.”

The plaintiff in that case received $9.7 million in payment for an on-the-job accident that cost him part of his arm, but wanted millions more in “noneconomic” damages in addition to that $9.7 million award.

SB 1065 effectively reinstates the old cap, adjusted for inflation.

Howard noted that only one member of the Oklahoma Supreme Court was among the majority that struck down the noneconomic-damages cap in 2019, and suggested a new court might take a different view of the law.

The State Chamber Research Foundation study estimated the share of state economic losses tied to the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s 2019 decision totaled nearly $2.7 billion in gross product from 2020 to 2023.

Democrats opposed the bill.

State Sen. Carri Hicks, D-Oklahoma City, predicted lawyers will not be willing to represent accident victims if SB 1065 becomes law since many attorneys work on a contingency-fee basis that guarantees them a large chunk of any award given to a plaintiff.

State Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, also debated against the bill.

“This change would limit justice for Oklahoma families,” Kirt said.

But Howard noted the benefits of the legislation may be felt by many Oklahomans through greater access to health care treatment if the cap on noneconomic damages becomes law.

“We would hopefully, or presumably, have more doctors being willing to practice within this state,” Howard said.

SB 1065 passed the Oklahoma Senate on a 37-8 vote that broke along party lines with Republicans in support and Democrats opposed. The bill now proceeds to the Oklahoma House of Representatives.