Testimony in the form of an opinion or inference otherwise admissible is not objectionable because it embraces an ultimate issue to be decided by the trier of fact.
§ 2704.Opinion On Ultimate Issue
Chapter 40: Oklahoma Evidence Code · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceProvides that otherwise-admissible opinion or inference testimony isn't objectionable merely because it embraces an ultimate issue that the trier of fact must decide, abolishing the old objection that such testimony invades the jury's province.
Full Text of § 2704
Amendment History
Laws 1978, SB 276, c. 285, § 704, eff. 10/1/1978.
Plain-English Summary
Section 2704 removes a once-common objection: that a witness's opinion invades the jury's territory by speaking to the question the jury must answer. As long as the opinion or inference is otherwise admissible, the fact that it embraces an ultimate issue doesn't make it objectionable.
Unlike the federal rule it parallels, Oklahoma's version doesn't carve out an exception for opinions about a criminal defendant's mental state. The text applies the same single standard across civil and criminal cases alike.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a witness give an opinion on the exact question the jury has to decide?
Yes, as long as the opinion is otherwise admissible, embracing an ultimate issue doesn't make it objectionable.
Does this section excuse the opinion from meeting the other evidence rules?
No, the opinion still has to be "otherwise admissible" -- this section only removes the ultimate-issue objection, not the requirements in Sections 2701 through 2703 and 2705.
Does Oklahoma limit expert opinions about a defendant's mental state the way federal law does?
No, the text applies the same rule to any otherwise-admissible opinion, without a separate carve-out for criminal-case mental-state testimony.
What common-law objection did this section eliminate?
The old objection that testimony invaded the jury's province by addressing the ultimate question the case turned on.
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: ultimate issue opinion testimony oklahoma12 O.S. § 2704FRE 704 oklahoma equivalentopinion invades province of jury oklahoma