The Oklahoma Bar Journal February 2024

structures, §955 does not specifi cally provide the requirement for pre-approval. Once upon a time, the organizational papers for an entity whose name even remotely suggested a connection to farming and ranching were required to bear the stamp of approval from the State Board of Agriculture before the secretary of state’s office would begin to process them. Today, I’m not sure that is still the case. Nevertheless, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (ODAFF) website does provide a link to an attestation form to be used in seeking the State Board of Agriculture’s approval. Following formation, the State Board of Agriculture is directed to “initiate and prosecute civil or criminal actions to enforce the provisions of this code.” Again,

corporations. Likewise, §955 adds requirements for the engagement in farming or ranching by trustees of trusts, partnerships and limited liability companies and restates the requirements for corporations. Without going into the details for each entity structure, these provi sions essentially restrict who may hold interests in the entity, limit how many interest holders each entity may have and the minimum percentage of gross receipts that must be derived by each entity from farming and ranching activities. So who enforces these require ments? Section 951 states that certificates of incorporation are to be approved by the State Board of Agriculture prior to being filed with the secretary of state. Though the same requirement has been inferred for other entity

private corporations from owning land, but to prevent land compa nies from buying rural land and further to prevent private corpora tions from buying more rural land than necessary and proper for their operation, so as to encourage pri vate rural home ownership.” The LeForce court went on to remind the Legislature that, should it desire, it had “ample” power to limit any potential abuses of corporate own ership of rural real estate. A few years later, in 1971, the Legislature did that by adding 18 O.S. §§951 through 954, and again in 1978 by adding 18 O.S. §§955 and 956. 4 Section 951 declares the pro hibition of foreign farming and ranching corporations to be the public policy of this state 5 and further establishes the requirements for domestic farming or ranching

Statements or opinions expressed in the Oklahoma Bar Journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff.

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THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL