Essential Designation Allows Attorneys to Keep Serving Clients During COVID-19 Closures

When Oklahoma claimants’ attorney Bob Burke woke up Wednesday, he wasn’t sure whether the state’s law firms were considered essential businesses under Gov. Kevin Stitt’s emergency declaration in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. By Wednesday afternoon, Burke got his answer, and his wish. One day after announcing his “Safer-at-Home” order — which instructed all non-essential businesses to close — Stitt amended the declaration by allowing legal services and myriad other professions to continue operating. “The governor was gracious in ...