The parent or parents having the right to recover damages for an injury to a minor child may assign to said child their right to recover said damages, and where the parent or parents of a minor child bring an action as guardian or guardian ad litem or next friend on behalf of said child and ask for a judgment for him for damages to which said parent or parents are entitled, said parent or parents will be deemed to have assigned to the minor child their right to recover such damages. Any damages recovered pursuant to this section shall be disposed of in the same manner as provided by Section 83 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
§ 2025.1.Assignment By Parent to Child of Right to Recover For Injury to Child
Chapter 39: Oklahoma Pleading Code · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceSection 2025.1 lets a parent assign to their minor child the parent's own right to recover damages for injury to that child, and treats a parent who sues as guardian or next friend and seeks a judgment for the child as having made that assignment automatically.
Full Text of § 2025.1
Amendment History
Laws 1977, SB 4, c. 138, § 1, eff. 10/1/1977; Renumbered from 12 O.S. § 244; Renumbered from 10 O.S. § 17.1 by Laws 2009, HB 2028, c. 233, §201, emerg. eff. 5/21/2009.
Plain-English Summary
Under Oklahoma law, a parent, not the child, generally holds certain rights connected to an injury to a minor child. This section lets the parent assign that right of recovery to the child directly, and it builds in a default rule: if a parent brings the suit as guardian, guardian ad litem, or next friend and asks for judgment in the child's favor for those damages, the parent is deemed to have made the assignment even without a separate document doing so. Any damages recovered this way are handled the same way Section 83 of Title 12 provides for other funds recovered on a minor's behalf.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a parent give up their own right to recover for a child's injury and let the child have it instead?
Yes -- the section lets a parent assign to the child their right to recover damages for an injury to that child.
Does the parent need a formal written assignment to make this happen?
Not necessarily -- if the parent sues as guardian, guardian ad litem, or next friend and asks for judgment for the child rather than themselves, the parent is deemed to have assigned the right automatically.
How is money recovered under this section handled?
It's disposed of in the same manner provided by Section 83 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
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 assignment of child injury claim12 O.S. § 2025.1parent assign right to recover child injury oklahomaminor child damages recovery oklahoma