The veto showed the power of the trial lawyers:

For a case study in the political power of trial lawyers, consider Oklahoma. The public wants tort reform, the state Legislature wants it, and even Democratic Governor Brad Henry claims to want it. Yet that didn’t stop Mr. Henry from recently vetoing an impressive reform bill at the urging of his plaintiff lawyer funders.

Oklahoma sure needs something. The state is 38th on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s rankings of state liability systems. It suffers badly in comparison to neighboring Texas, which has used its sweeping 2003 tort reform to lure business across the border. Malpractice premiums are high, and rural areas in Oklahoma report shortages of such specialty doctors as obstetricians.

(via PointofLaw.com)