| Opinion: | Continental Resources v. Wolla Oilfield Services, 2022 OK 40 |
| Subject matter: | Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act |
| Date Decided: | May 3, 2022 |
| Trial Court: | N/A |
| Route to this Court: | Certified Question from the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. |
| Facts: | Continental contracted with Wolla for Wolla to provide hot oil services at an hourly rate. A whistleblower at Wolla informed Continental that Wolla was systematically overbilling. The overbilling was estimated to be $2.4 million dollars. Continental sued Wolla under the Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act CPA. 15 O.S. 2021 §§ 751-764. The CPA prohibits unlawful practices and conduct made in connection with a consumer transaction. At the trial court level, Wolla alleged that the CPA does not apply to them because they are a North Dakota business and the fraud occurred in North Dakota. The two questions certified by the Court were: 1) Does the Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act apply to a consumer transaction when the offending conduct that triggers the Act occurs solely within the physical boundaries of another state? and 2) Does the Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act apply to conduct where, even if the physical location is difficult to pinpoint, such actions or transactions have a material impact on, or material nexus to, a consumer in the state of Oklahoma? |
| Standard of Review: | Not specified. |
| Analysis: | The Supreme Court decided that the CPA does not apply when the offending conduct occurs solely within another state’s boundaries. It is the location of the violating conduct that determines whether the OCPA applies. Harvell, 2006 OK 24, ¶24, 164 P.3d at 1037. Because the violating conduct did not occur in Oklahoma, the CPA does not apply. Regarding the second question, the Supreme Court ruled the CPA does not apply. The Court reasoned: “The mere fact that a transaction has a material impact on or nexus to a consumer in Oklahoma, without more, is not enough to invoke this state’s consumer protection laws.” Again, the focus is on the location of the offending conduct, and such conduct must occur in that state. |
| Outcome: | The Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act does not apply to a consumer transaction when the offending conduct that triggers the Act occurs solely within the physical boundaries of a different state. The Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act does not apply to conduct where, even if the physical location is difficult to pinpoint, such actions or transactions have a material impact on, or material nexus to, a consumer in the state of Oklahoma |
| Vote: | 9-0; All Justices Concur. Combs, J. (author). |
| Other: | No additional briefs requested by the Court in the certified question. |