Section 328.19 has been amended repeatedly, including by 2025 S.B. 669 (effective November 1, 2025) and 2026 H.B. 3934 (emergency effective July 1, 2026). Read the current OSCN text before relying on any clause, and watch the legislation tracker.
1. CPOD status
Tier: Strict- 59 O.S. § 328.19(A)(18): practicing dentistry includes “Owning, maintaining, or operating an office or offices by holding a financial interest in same for the practice of dentistry.” A lay entity holding a financial interest in a dental office is practicing dentistry without a license.
- § 328.49(B), (C)(2): unlicensed practice is a Class D1 felony, punishable by a fine of 10,000, imprisonment, or both. Each day is a separate offense.
- Attorney general opinions construing § 328.19 exist (the ones reviewed for this page concern scope-of-practice programs rather than corporate ownership), and Board of Governors of Registered Dentists v. Burk, 1976 OK 70, 551 P.2d 1122, discusses the act at length.
2. Other professions
This page covers dentistry only. Medicine, optometry, veterinary practice, and other professions are governed by different statutes and boards, even within the same state. For medical-practice sources, use the MSO-PC Wiki.3. Professional entity forms
Permitted forms: professional entities under Oklahoma’s Professional Entity Act, 18 O.S. § 801 et seq. Shareholders generally must be licensed in the profession; verify the pinpoints with counsel before filing. Under 59 O.S. § 328.31(B), a dental professional entity must also register with the Board before rendering services and update that registration during each annual renewal period.1 Ownership: Dentist-only in effect, because a lay financial interest in the office is unlicensed practice under § 328.19(A)(18). Also confirm before filing:- Naming rules, designator requirements, and any limits tied to licensed owners’ names; several states regulate dental trade names separately
- Board pre-approval or certificates, whether the dental board must act before (or after) the secretary of state will file
- Officer and director licensure, including states that restrict these roles as well as ownership to licensees
4. Fee-splitting and management-fee structure
Oklahoma has an express referral-fee rule, though not a provision that automatically decides every percentage-based management fee. Section 328.32(A)(19) makes it disciplinary conduct to divide or agree to divide a dental-services fee with any person in exchange for bringing or referring a patient.1 Separately, § 328.19(A)(18) makes a management fee structured as a share of revenues or profits look like a financial interest in the office, which is itself the practice of dentistry. Flat or cost-plus fair-market-value fees keep support compensation legible as payment for actual services rather than a referral payment or ownership interest. For the MSA, test whether a percentage-of-collections fee is permitted under the state’s dental, fee-splitting, referral, tax, and contract rules. Several states expressly restrict revenue-linked dental management fees, and the Aspen Dental settlements imposed related party-specific terms. Flat and cost-plus formulas are not automatic safe harbors; the services, calculation, amount, control rights, and actual payments still matter. See Fee-splitting rules and Set the management fee.5. Dentist noncompetes
No dental-specific noncompete statute was identified in the sources used for this page. Oklahoma’s general restrictive-covenant law has changed in recent legislative sessions, so verify the current law with counsel before including one. Federal noncompete policy changed substantially in 2025 and 2026. The FTC’s Non-Compete Rule was vacated, the agency dismissed its appeals in September 2025, and the rule was removed from 16 C.F.R. pt. 910 effective February 12, 2026. State law remains central. Dental enforcement resolutions in New York and California have also restricted noncompetes for the settling parties as a corporate-practice remedy. Verify the current rule, worker, agreement type, transaction context, effective date, and remedy in this state. See the legislation tracker.6. DSO-specific law and registration
Oklahoma does not label its filing a “DSO registration,” but it does impose an entity-level dental filing. Section 328.31(B) requires every professional entity formed to render dental professional services to register with the Board before rendering services and update the registration each renewal period; the Board maintains the registry and may enforce the Dental Act against the entity and its owners, managers, agents, employees, or interest holders.1 Do not confuse that filing with trade-name use. Section 328.31a allows one or more dentists to use a nonmisleading trade name, requires retention of advertisements for three years, and requires dental advertising to name the treating dentists and identify their license type; it does not call for registration of the trade name in the current text.1 Section 328.32(A)(36) disciplines a dentist who allows a lay corporation, organization, group, person, or entity to direct, control, or interfere with clinical judgment. The statute defines clinical judgment to include treatment selection, patient-record control, pricing, credit, refunds, warranties, advertising, office personnel, and practice hours. The exception covers another dentist or a § 328.31(B)-compliant professional entity, not a lay DSO. Allocate each listed item expressly in the management services agreement and operating policies.17. Death and transition window
No statutory death or estate window was located in the State Dental Act. Verify the point with counsel. Succession depends on professional-entity mechanics and advance planning. See Plan for succession.8. Practical structuring notes
Both “financial interest” and “clinical judgment” matter when drafting. Oklahoma places pricing, refunds, advertising, personnel, and hours within its statutory clinical-judgment list. DSO equity and revenue-share fees therefore require careful review, and the professional entity should retain final authority over every item in § 328.32(A)(36). Section 328.19 was amended in 2013, 2015, 2022, 2025, and 2026. Recheck an Oklahoma MSA against the current official compilation at each renewal.9. Verification checklist
- Confirmed the permitted entity form for dentistry in this state
- Confirmed whether dental board pre-approval or a certificate is required before filing
- Confirmed whether officers and directors must be licensed dentists
- Confirmed the management fee structure is lawful here, including any restriction on revenue-linked fees
- Clinical carve-out drafted against this state’s current statutory language, including any enumerated control prohibitions
- Transfer restriction and succession documents checked against this state’s death-transition window
- Noncompete provisions checked against current state law
- DSO foreign-qualified before it has employees here
- Any DSO registration, licensure, or disclosure obligation identified and calendared
- Trade-name and advertising-disclosure rules for dental practices checked
10. Sources and where to verify
For the cases and statutes referenced above, see DSO & dental case law and the 51-jurisdiction table. For enacted and pending legislation, see the dental legislation tracker.