A. Persons in a proceeding pending before a tribunal may sign a collaborative law participation agreement to seek to resolve a collaborative matter related to the proceeding. The parties shall file promptly with the tribunal a notice of the agreement after it is signed. Subject to subsection C of this section and Sections 7 and 8 of this act, the filing operates as an application for a stay of the proceeding.
§ 3306.Proceedings Pending Before Tribunal - Status Report
Chapter 41A: Structured Settlement Protection Act of 2001 · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceRequires parties already in a pending proceeding who sign a collaborative agreement to file notice with the tribunal, treats that filing as a stay request, lifts the stay once the process concludes, and limits any status report the tribunal can demand to whether the process is ongoing or over.
Full Text of § 3306
B. The parties shall file promptly with the tribunal notice in a record when a collaborative law process concludes. The stay of the proceeding under subsection A of this section is lifted when the notice is filed. The notice may not specify any reason for termination of the process.
C. A tribunal in which a proceeding is stayed under subsection A of this section may require the parties and collaborative lawyers to provide a status report on the collaborative law process and the proceeding. A status report may include only information on whether the process is ongoing or concluded. It may not include a report, assessment, evaluation, recommendation, finding, or other communication regarding a collaborative law process or collaborative law matter.
D. A tribunal may not consider a communication made in violation of subsection C of this section.
E. A tribunal shall provide parties notice and an opportunity to be heard before dismissing a proceeding in which a notice of collaborative process is filed based on delay or failure to prosecute.
Amendment History
Added by Laws 2025, c. 226,s. 6, eff. 1/1/2026.
Plain-English Summary
When a lawsuit is already pending and the parties decide to try collaborative law instead, Section 3306 tells them how to keep the tribunal in the loop. They must promptly file notice of the signed agreement, and that filing works as a request to stay the proceeding, subject to the tribunal's status-report power and to the emergency-order and agreement-approval provisions elsewhere in the act. Once the collaborative process ends, the parties must file another notice -- without stating why it ended -- and that lifts the stay automatically.
While the case is stayed, the tribunal can ask for a status report, but only on whether the process is ongoing or concluded -- not an assessment, evaluation, recommendation, or finding about it, and the tribunal can't consider any communication that oversteps that limit. If a tribunal is thinking about dismissing a stayed case for delay or failure to prosecute, it has to give the parties notice and a chance to be heard first.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I'm already in a lawsuit and want to try collaborative law, does the case just stop?
Filing notice of the signed collaborative law participation agreement with the tribunal operates as an application for a stay of the pending proceeding.
What can the judge ask about my collaborative law process while the case is stayed?
Only whether the process is ongoing or concluded -- the tribunal can't require a report, assessment, evaluation, recommendation, or finding about it.
Does the notice ending the process have to explain why it failed?
No. Section 3306 says the notice that the process has concluded may not specify any reason for termination.
Can my case get dismissed while I'm in collaborative law without warning?
No. The tribunal must give the parties notice and an opportunity to be heard before dismissing a stayed proceeding for delay or failure to prosecute.
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: staying a lawsuit for collaborative law oklahomacollaborative law status report requirements12 O.S. § 3306