Montgomery v. Potter

Summary

The Oklahoma Supreme Court held that 47 O.S. 2011, § 7-116, commonly known as the No Pay, No Play law, was an unconstitutional special law under article 5, § 46 of the Oklahoma Constitution. The statute improperly limited pain-and-suffering damages for uninsured drivers in automobile negligence actions, and the court affirmed the trial court's certified interlocutory order striking down the statute.

Holdings

1. Section 7-116 is an unconstitutional special law because it targets uninsured automobile-accident plaintiffs, a subset of plaintiffs in automobile-negligence actions, for different treatment by restricting their recovery of pain-and-suffering damages.

Questions Presented

1. Whether 47 O.S. 2011, § 7-116, which limits an uninsured driver's recovery in an automobile-accident action to medical costs, property damage, and lost income and excludes pain-and-suffering damages, violates article 5, § 46 of the Oklahoma Constitution as an unconstitutional special law.

Disposition

affirmed