Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 12-2005

SERVICE AND FILING OF PLEADINGS AND OTHER PAPERS

A. SERVICE: WHEN REQUIRED. Except as otherwise provided in

this title, every order required by its terms to be served, every

pleading subsequent to the original petition unless the court

otherwise orders because of numerous defendants, every paper

relating to discovery required to be served upon a party or any

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other person unless the court otherwise orders, every written motion

other than one which may be heard ex parte, and every written

notice, appearance, demand, offer of judgment, and similar paper

shall be served upon each of the parties. No service need be made

on parties in default for failure to appear except that:

1. Pleadings asserting new or additional claims for relief

against them shall be served upon them in the manner provided for

service of summons in Section 2004 of this title; and

2. Service of judgments, decrees or appealable orders against

them shall be made in accordance with subsection B of Section 696.2

of this title.

B. SERVICE: HOW MADE. Whenever pursuant to this act service is

required or permitted to be made upon a party represented by an

attorney the service shall be made upon the attorney unless service

directly upon the party is ordered by the court or final judgment

has been rendered and the time for appeal has expired. Service upon

the attorney or upon a party shall be made by delivering a copy to

the attorney or the party or by mailing it or sending it by third-

party commercial carrier for delivery within three (3) calendar days

to the attorney or the party at the last-known address of the

attorney or the party or by electronic means if the attorney or

party consents in writing to receiving service in a particular case

by electronic means and the attorney or party provides instructions

for making the electronic service consented to by the attorney or

party. The required written consent and electronic service

instructions may be made in the entry of appearance filed by the

attorney or the party pursuant to subsection A of Section 2005.2 of

this title or may be made in another pleading filed by the attorney

or party in the case. For purposes of this subsection, “electronic

means” includes communications by facsimile or electronic mail

through the internet, commonly known as e-mail. If no mailing

address, physical address or electronic means address for the

attorney or party is known, service is effected by leaving it with

the clerk of the court. Delivery of a copy within this section

means:

1. Handing it to the attorney or to the party; or

2. Leaving it at the office of the attorney or the party with

the attorney’s or party’s clerk or other person in charge thereof;

or

3. If there is no one in charge, leaving it in a conspicuous

place therein; or

4. If the office is closed or the person to be served has no

office, leaving it at his or her dwelling house or usual place of

abode with some person residing therein who is fifteen (15) years of

age or older.

Except for service of the summons and the original petition, service

by mail is complete upon mailing, service by commercial carrier is

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complete upon delivery to the commercial carrier, and service by

electronic means is complete upon transmission, unless the party

making service is notified that the copy or paper served was not

received by the party served. If the court clerk or a party is

required to serve a judgment or other paper by first-class mail,

service in accordance with any method permitted by this section is

sufficient to comply with such requirement.

C. SERVICE: NUMEROUS DEFENDANTS. In any action in which there

are unusually large numbers of defendants, the court, upon motion or

of its own initiative, may order that service of the pleadings of

the defendants and replies thereto need not be made as between the
y first-class mail,

service in accordance with any method permitted by this section is

sufficient to comply with such requirement.

C. SERVICE: NUMEROUS DEFENDANTS. In any action in which there

are unusually large numbers of defendants, the court, upon motion or

of its own initiative, may order that service of the pleadings of

the defendants and replies thereto need not be made as between the

defendants and that any cross-claim, counterclaim, or matter

constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense contained therein

shall be deemed to be denied or avoided by all other parties and

that the filing of any such pleading and service thereof upon the

plaintiff constitutes due notice of it to the parties. A copy of

every such order shall be served upon the parties in such manner and

form as the court directs.

D. FILING. All papers after the petition required to be served

upon a party shall be filed with the court either before service or

within a reasonable time thereafter, but the court may on motion of

a party or on its own initiative order that depositions upon oral

examination and interrogatories, requests for documents, requests

for admission, and answers and responses thereto not be filed unless

on order of the court or for use in the proceeding. All papers

filed with the court shall include a statement setting forth the

names of the persons served and the date, place, and method of

service.

E. FILING WITH THE COURT DEFINED.

1. The filing of papers with the court as required by this act

shall be made by filing them with the clerk of the court, except

that the judge may permit the papers to be filed with him or her, in

which event he or she shall note thereon the filing date and

forthwith transmit them to the office of the clerk.

2. A duplicate of any paper shall be acceptable for filing with

the court and shall have the same force and effect as an original.

For purposes of this section a duplicate is a copy produced on

unglazed white or eggshell paper by mechanical, chemical or

electronic means, or by other equivalent technique, which accurately

reproduces the original. A duplicate that is acceptable for filing

shall not be refused because any signatures thereon are duplicates.

A carbon copy shall not be considered a duplicate for purposes of

this section.

3. Papers may be filed by facsimile or other electronic

transmission directly to the court or the court clerk as permitted

by a rule of court. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall

promulgate rules for the district court for the filing of papers

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transmitted by facsimile or other electronic transmission device.

Rules for facsimile or other electronic transmission filing must

have the approval of the Supreme Court.

4. The clerk shall not refuse to accept for filing any paper

solely because it is not presented in proper form as required by

these rules or any local rules or practices.