stillthelaw:

  It’s called a ‘Sham Provision’. The state code actually uses the term to refer to frivolous legal initiatives in our civil court system. the law allows a County Court Clerk to exercise personal and professional judgment to determine if a petition to the court is a waste of time, mockery of the court, or worse.

  But fear not, there are remedies to overcome the potential abuse of power. One is a ‘writ of mandamus’. And the clerk must present that demand for review to the judge.

  Don’t let the Latin words fool you. Lawyers use that stuff all the time to try to either impress or intimidate us.  Mandamus means ‘we command’. We derive the word ‘mandate’ from that original root word.

§12-29.  Clerks to file and preserve papers - Refusal to file sham legal process.

A.  It is the duty of the clerk of each of the courts to file together and carefully preserve in his office, all papers delivered to him for that purpose, except as provided in subsection B of this section, in every action or special proceeding.

B.  The court clerk may refuse to file any document presented for filing if the clerk believes that the document constitutes sham legal process, as defined by Section 1533 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

C. 

 1.  Any person aggrieved by the refusal of a court clerk to file any document provided for in subsection A of this section may petition the district court for a writ of mandamus to compel the clerk to file the tendered document.
2.  At the time of refusal, the person aggrieved shall file a notice of refusal with the court clerk for the purpose of tolling any applicable statute of limitations in the event the person prevails in any action so commenced, if the person wishes for the statute of limitations to be tolled.  The refusal notice shall be submitted on a form provided by the court clerk, but must be filled out by the aggrieved party.  A copy of the instrument that the clerk refused to file must be attached to the notice of refusal.  The court clerk shall stamp the date of refusal on the notice of refusal.

stillthelaw:

  There are a lot of  ways a city official can get removed from office. Just missing half the meetings in a 4-month span is one such trigger.

§11-8-107.  Removal of officers.

  A municipal elected official may be removed from office for any cause specified by applicable state law for the removal of officers, and by the method or methods prescribed thereby.

Laws 1977, c. 256, § 8-107, eff. July 1, 1978.

§11-8-108.  Absence from governing body meetings.

  Whenever a member of the municipal governing body is absent from more than one-half of all meetings of the governing body, regular and special, held within any period of four (4) consecutive months, he shall thereupon cease to hold office.

Laws 1977, c. 256, § 8-108, eff. July 1, 1978.

stillthelaw:

 Shortly after World War One, the state legislature saw the need for each county to develop a comprehensive plan to respond to the crisis of orphaned & neglected children.

  This was in  a time when social welfare was seen as a county issue, rather than a state matter.

§10-131.  Powers of county commissioners - Commitment of children to other institutions, associations or corporations.

  The county commissioners of any county of this state having a population of not less than seventy-five thousand (75,000) persons, according to the last Decennial Federal Census, or any Decennial Federal Census hereafter taken, are hereby authorized and empowered, if they deem it necessary or expedient, to purchase a farm and to construct, establish, equip and maintain thereon, at the expense of the county, county supervised schools and homes for neglected and dependent boys and girls of such county, under the age of sixteen (16) years, who may be appointed to such schools by the district court of such county, and to make enlargements and additions thereto from time to time.  Such commissioners shall also have power to purchase farm equipment to be used in connection with such schools, to purchase materials, supplies and equipment for manual, vocational or other training or education, and to erect, enlarge, remodel, and repair such building, dormitories, residences, administration and school buildings, and barns and outbuildings as they may from time to time deem necessary or expedient.

  Provided, that such county commissioners may rent a suitable site and buildings for such purpose, and purchase the necessary equipment and supplies therefor.  Provided, further, that said county commissioners shall make no expenditures or contract for expenditures hereunder until a tax levy for such purposes shall have been made as hereinafter provided; and provided, further, that the district court of such county, may, in his discretion, commit dependent and neglected children to such other institutions as may be now or hereafter provided by law for such purposes, or to the care of some association or corporation willing to receive them, which said corporation or association embraces in its objects the purpose of caring for and obtaining homes for such neglected and dependent children.
Laws 1919, c. 297, p. 433, § 1; Laws 1925, c. 161, p. 257, § 1; Laws 1967, c. 367, § 1, emerg. eff. May 22, 1967.

stillthelaw:

  Our state code subjects the municipal governments to the same initiative petition process that is a cornerstone of our state’s constitution. The initiative petition process is binding and effective to change the way city government operates, and even organizes.

§11-15-101.  Initiative and Referendum - Powers.

  The powers of initiative and referendum, reserved by the Oklahoma Constitution to the people, are reserved to the people of every municipal corporation with reference to all legislative authority which it may exercise and amendments to municipal charters.

Laws 1977, c. 256, § 15-101, eff. July 1, 1978.

§11-15-102.  Procedure for initiative and referendum in municipalities.

  The procedure in municipalities which do not provide by ordinance or charter for the manner of exercising the initiative and referendum powers shall be governed by the Oklahoma Constitution and general state law, except as otherwise provided in Sections 15-101 through 15-110 of this title.  The duties required of the Governor by state law shall be performed by the mayor; the duties of the Secretary of State shall be performed by the municipal clerk; and the duties of the Attorney General shall be performed by the attorney for the municipality.  The procedure for initiative and referendum as to municipal legislation shall be as nearly as practicable the same as those for measures relating to the people of the state at large.

Laws 1977, c. 256, § 15-102, eff. July 1, 1978.

§11-15-103.  Petition - Form - Signatures - Time for filing.

A.  The form of the petition for either initiative or referendum in a municipality shall be substantially as provided in Sections 1 and 2 of Title 34 of the Oklahoma Statutes.  A true copy of each measure proposed by initiative and referendum shall be filed with the clerk of the municipality before it is circulated and signed by the registered voters.

B.  Every petition for either the initiative or referendum shall be signed by a number of the registered voters residing in the municipality equal to at least twenty-five percent (25%) of the total number of votes cast at the preceding general election or biennial town meeting if the municipality is subject to the Oklahoma Town Meeting Act.  The signatures to each petition shall be verified in the manner provided by law.

C.  Signed copies of an initiative petition shall be submitted to the clerk within ninety (90) days after the initial filing of the measure with the clerk.  Signed copies of a petition invoking a referendum upon any ordinance or resolution shall be submitted to the clerk within sixty (60) days after the passage of the ordinance or resolution.  Amendments to municipal charters may be proposed by an initiative petition, and signed copies of such petition shall be submitted to the clerk not less than sixty (60) days before the election at which the amendments are to be voted upon.

Added by Laws 1977, c. 256, § 15-103, eff. July 1, 1978.  Amended by Laws 1988, c. 105, § 18, eff. Nov. 1, 1988.  Amended by Laws 2016, c. 41, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2016.

stillthelaw:

  When a burial ground, whether previously known or unknown, is on or surrounded completely by private property, the descendants of the interred will have visitation rights in perpetuity. The grave is to remain undisturbed by the property owner.

§8-187.  Abandoned cemetery on privately owned land - Visitation rights.

Any relative of the deceased who wishes to visit an abandoned cemetery which is completely surrounded by privately owned land, for which no public ingress or egress is available, shall have the right to reasonable ingress or egress for the purpose of visiting such cemetery.
  This right of access to such cemeteries extends only to visitation during reasonable hours and only for purposes usually associated with cemetery visits.  For the purposes of this section, “abandoned cemetery” means any place where human skeletal remains are buried and which no body has been interred for at least twenty-five (25) years and where such site is readily identifiable as a cemetery by an inspection of the property.  Any relative of the deceased who wishes to visit an abandoned cemetery shall make a good faith effort to notify the owners and tenants, if any, of said property prior to visiting the cemetery.  This section shall not be interpreted to allow the creation of an easement or claim of easement nor a right of ownership or claim of right of ownership to an abandoned cemetery.

Added by Laws 1992, c. 214, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1992.

stillthelaw:

  Whenever a cemetery is designated by an entity bearing title to the land, up to 80 acres can be claimed as burial grounds. Those grounds cannot be disturbed by any eminent domain actions. Roads planned for that thoroughfare will have to go around the tract of land designated as a burial ground.

§8-7.  Exemptions.

All the property of every such benevolent corporation, and the lots sold by it to individual proprietors, shall be exempt from taxation, assessment, lien, attachment, and from levy and sale upon execution; and all such real property shall be exempt from appropriation for streets, roads, or any other public uses or purposes.

R.L.1910, § 386.

stillthelaw:

  In many neighborhoods, property owners often assume they have no obligation to pay for a fence they didn’t ask for. But the law says otherwise. In most situations, the only way to avoid paying for half the fencing costs is to declare your own abutting property as ‘common’ and allowing any and all public activities to take place on your property.

§4-142.  Fence repair.

  All partition fences shall be kept in good repair throughout the year, unless the owners on both sides otherwise agree in writing.

R.L. 1910, § 160.

§4-143.  Commons - Owners not required to fence - Lands enclosed or used otherwise than as commons - Duty to fence.

  Any person not wishing his land enclosed, and not occupying or using it otherwise than as commons, shall not be compelled to contribute to erect or maintain any fence between him and an adjacent owner; but when he encloses or uses his land otherwise than as a commons, he shall contribute to the partition fences as in this article provided.
R.L. 1910, § 161.

§4-146.  Joinder to partition fence - Payment for or rebuilding of half of fence.

  When land which has lain unenclosed is enclosed the owner thereof, before he join to any partition fence, already erected, shall pay for one-half (½) of each partition fence between his lands and the adjoining lands, the value to be ascertained by the fence viewers, and if he neglects for thirty (30) days after notice and demand to pay the same, the party to whose fence he joins may recover as before provided, or such person, enclosing such land, may, at his election, rebuild and make one-half (½) of the fence, and if he neglects so to do for two (2) months after making such election, he shall be liable as above provided.

R.L. 1910, § 164.

§4-147.  Recorded fence division - Effect on owners and successors.

  When a division of fence between the owners of improved land shall have been made, either by fence viewers or agreement in writing, and is recorded in the office of the county clerk of the county where the lands are, the owners and their heirs and assigns shall be bound thereby, and shall support them accordingly.

R.L. 1910, § 165.

stillthelaw:

When property owners have a dispute regarding a common fence on a property line, Oklahoma law provides for the creation of a tribunal of 3 ‘Fence Viewers’.  This office has official powers and state sanctioning.

  Here is the statutory code regarding the authority and make up of the Fence Viewers.

§4-139.  Controversy over partition fence - Application to fence viewers - Notice - Authority of viewers.

When a controversy arises between the respective owners about the obligation to erect or maintain a partition fence, either party may apply to the fence viewers, who, after due notice to each party, may inquire into the matter and assign to each his share thereof, and direct the time in which each shall erect or repair his share in the manner provided above.

R.L. 1910, § 157.

§4-139.  Controversy over partition fence - Application to fence viewers - Notice - Authority of viewers.

When a controversy arises between the respective owners about the obligation to erect or maintain a partition fence, either party may apply to the fence viewers, who, after due notice to each party, may inquire into the matter and assign to each his share thereof, and direct the time in which each shall erect or repair his share in the manner provided above.

R.L. 1910, § 157.

§4-151.  Additional powers of fence viewers.

When any question arises between parties other than those stated, concerning their rights in fences or their duties in relation to building or maintaining or removing them, such question may be determined by the fence viewers.
R.L. 1910, § 169.

stillthelaw:

  If you were born after July 1, 1974, it is illegal for anyone to call you ‘illegitimate’ or ‘bastard’. the state legislature says that free speech rights do not extend to the freedom to describe a person pertaining to their lineage using those to terms.

§10-6.5.  Use of certain words in reference to children born out of wedlock prohibited.

A.  On and after the date upon which this act becomes operative, the designations “illegitimate” or “bastard” shall not be used to designate a child born out of wedlock.

B.  No person, firm, corporation, agency, organization, the State of Oklahoma nor any of its agencies, boards, commission officers or political subdivisions, nor any hospital, nor any institution supported by public funds, nor any employee of any of the above, shall use the term “illegitimate” or “bastard” in referring to or designating any child born on or after the operative date of this act.

Laws 1974, c. 297, § 1, operative July 1, 1974.