Okla. Stat. tit. 12A, § 2A-501 – Default - Procedure

(1) Whether the lessor or the lessee is in default under a lease contract is determined by the lease agreement and this article.
(2) If the lessor or the lessee is in default under the lease contract, the party seeking enforcement has rights and remedies as provided in this article and, except as limited by this article, as provided in the lease agreement.
(3) If the lessor or the lessee is in default under the lease contract, the party seeking enforcement may reduce the party's claim to judgment, or otherwise enforce the lease contract by self-help or any available judicial procedure or nonjudicial procedure, including administrative proceeding, arbitration, or the like, in accordance with this article.
(4) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (a) of Section 18 of this act or this article or the lease agreement, the rights and remedies referred to in subsections (2) and (3) of this section are cumulative.
(5) If the lease agreement covers both real property and goods, the party seeking enforcement may proceed under this Part as to the goods, or under other applicable law as to both the real property and the goods in accordance with that party's rights and remedies in respect of the real property, in which case this Part does not apply.
Oklahoma Comment The 1991 amendments make numerous changes to the remedy structure of Article 2A primarily to add a remedy structure for non-statutory defaults and to clarify various points. The Supplementary Commentary should be consulted for details. Only some of the amendments are noted in the following comments to various sections in Part 5. Sections 2A-508 and 2A-523, as was the case in 15 Oklahoma Statutes §§ 536, 537, 538, 539 and 540 before their repeal by H.B.1683 enacting Article 2A, stipulate that certain events will constitute a default under a lease. In that event at least the remedies provided by the statute for a default, except as modified by agreement (§§ 2A-503 and 2A-504), are applicable. See § 2A-501(1) and (2). The events of default from the perspective of the lessee are listed in § 2A-508 and are: failure to deliver in conformity with the lease contract (which includes breach of warranty since warranty, express or implied, is part of the total legal obligation that results from the lease agreement under § 2A-103(1)(l)); repudiation; and circumstances that allow the lessee to rightfully reject or justifiably revoke acceptance of the goods. The events of default from the perspective of the lessor are listed in § 2A-523 and are: wrongful rejection or revocation of acceptance; failure to make a payment due; and repudiation. Clearly, the normal lease agreement prepared by the lessor will include many other events that may constitute a default, including: bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or an assignment for the benefit of creditors; failure to insure the property; failure to maintain or repair the property; material misrepresentation as to financial condition; removal of the property or the transfer of an interest in the lease without consent, or a failure to remove a lien; and death. These events must be defined as, or be capable of becoming (such as upon notice from the lessor with or without a cure period) a default, in order to trigger the statutory remedy structure which for the most part is triggered by default. Further, it probably is wise to explicitly state in the lease that for any event that is a default under Article 2A or under the lease the aggrieved party has available all, or that part agreed upon, of the remedy structure contained in or contemplated by Article 2A, including any contractual remedy structure. See §§ 2A-501, 2A-508(3), and § 2A-523(2). In this respect, the approach of Article 2A probably does not change Oklahoma law. To illustrate, in Penton v. Hansen, 73 P. 843 (Okla.1903), the plaintiff leased six head of cattle to defendant for three years. Even though the defendant unlawfully procured a judicial sale of the cattle at which he purchased, the court held that the plaintiff could not maintain replevin to recover possession of the cattle sold before the end of the term of the lease. The 1991 amendments, however, add a general remedy structure other than that for statutory defaults which will apply absent agreed remedies for contractual defaults. See amended §§ 2A-508(3) and 2A-523(3).

Historical Data Laws 1988, HB 1683, c. 86, § 48, eff. November 1, 1988; Amended by Laws 1991, SB 25, c. 117, § 12, eff. January 1, 1992; Amended by Laws 2005, HB 2028, c. 139, § 29, eff. January 1, 2006 (superseded document available).