No action in tort to recover damages
§ 109.Limitation of Action to Recover Damages Arising From Design, Planning Or Construction of Improvement to Real Property
Chapter 3: Limitations of Actions · Last amended October 1, 1978 · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceSection 109 bars any tort suit over a deficiency in the design, planning, or construction of an improvement to real property, whether the claim is for property damage, personal injury, or wrongful death, once ten years have passed since the improvement was substantially completed.
Full Text of § 109
(i) for any deficiency in the design, planning, supervision or observation of construction or construction of an improvement to real property, (ii) for injury to property, real or personal, arising out of any such deficiency, or (iii) for injury to the person or for wrongful death arising out of any such deficiency, shall be brought against any person owning, leasing, or in possession of such an improvement or performing or furnishing the design, planning, supervision or observation of construction or construction of such an improvement more than ten (10) years after substantial completion of such an improvement.
Amendment History
Laws 1967, SB 232, c. 360, § 1, emerg. eff. 5/22/1967; Amended by Laws 1978, HB 1615, c. 188, § 1, eff. 10/1/1978.
Plain-English Summary
This is a true statute of repose, not an ordinary statute of limitations. Where §§ 92 through 102 count the deadline from when a claim accrues, Section 109 counts from a fixed external event, substantial completion of the improvement, and cuts off the right to sue ten years after that, no matter when the injury happened or was discovered.
The bar reaches anyone owning, leasing, or in possession of the improvement, and anyone who performed or furnished the design, planning, supervision, or construction. Sections 110 and 111 qualify how this ten-year period interacts with injuries occurring late in the period and with other deadlines, and § 113 defines who counts as a “person” for the whole act.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long after a building is finished can someone sue over a construction defect in Oklahoma?
Ten years after substantial completion of the improvement; Section 109 bars a tort suit for property damage, personal injury, or wrongful death arising from a design or construction deficiency after that.
Who can be sued under this section?
Anyone owning, leasing, or in possession of the improvement, or anyone who performed or furnished the design, planning, supervision, or construction.
Does it matter when the injury happened?
Section 109 counts from substantial completion, not from the injury; § 110 gives a separate rule for injuries occurring during the fifth year after completion.
Is this the same as Oklahoma's regular statute of limitations for torts?
No, this ten-year period runs from substantial completion of construction, not from when the claim accrues as under § 95.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes, enacted by the Oklahoma Legislature.
Last verified August 3, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: Oklahoma construction statute of reposeten year construction defect deadline Oklahoma12 O.S. § 109improvement to real property lawsuit deadline