Except as otherwise provided by constitution, statute or rules promulgated by the Supreme Court no person has a privilege to:
§ 2501.Privileges Recognized Only As Provided
Chapter 40: Oklahoma Evidence Code · Last amended November 1, 2002 · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceStates that no person has a privilege to refuse to be a witness, refuse to disclose a matter, refuse to produce an object or record, or prevent someone else from doing so, except as a constitution, statute, or Oklahoma Supreme Court rule otherwise provides.
Full Text of § 2501
1. Refuse to be a witness;
2. Refuse to disclose any matter;
3. Refuse to produce any object or record; or
4. Prevent another from being a witness or disclosing any matter or producing any object or record.
Amendment History
Laws 1978, SB 276, c. 285, § 501, eff. 10/1/1978; Amended by Laws 2002, HB 1939, c. 468, §31, eff. 11/1/2002.
Plain-English Summary
Section 2501 sets the ground rule for every privilege that follows in this article: privileges exist only where the constitution, a statute, or a rule the Oklahoma Supreme Court promulgates says they do. Absent one of those sources, no person can refuse to be a witness, refuse to disclose a matter, refuse to produce an object or record, or block someone else from doing any of those things.
Where Federal Rule of Evidence 501 leaves privilege law largely to be worked out by the courts under common-law principles, Section 2501 takes the opposite structure -- a default of no privilege, overridden only by an identified source of law.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do evidentiary privileges in Oklahoma come from?
Section 2501 limits them to constitution, statute, or a rule the Oklahoma Supreme Court promulgates -- no person has a privilege outside those sources.
Can a person refuse to produce a record just because they don't want it disclosed?
Not unless a recognized privilege applies. Section 2501(3) states there's no privilege to refuse to produce an object or record except as otherwise provided.
Does this section create the attorney-client privilege or other specific privileges?
No, it just sets the baseline rule that privileges must come from somewhere else in the law; Section 2502 and Section 2502.1, for instance, create the attorney-client and accountant-client privileges specifically.
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
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