Posted on March 12, 2024 in Criminal Defense

"Moving forward, our office will continue to pursue stiff penalties [for child pornography cases] …"

That was the strong message delivered by Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy on November 20, 2023, following the sentencing of Patrick Wojahn. Wojahn, the former mayor of College Park, pled guilty to 140 counts of possession and/or distribution of child pornography and was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison. The prosecutor assigned to that case explained during the sentencing hearing, "The reason why he pled to 140 counts was because our office is not going to take a position as to which child deserves to have their rape—that was memorialized on video and forever lives on the internet—pled to."

So, you can imagine the angst my client felt when he learned on December 7, 2023—just a little over two weeks after the Wojahn sentencing—that he had been indicted with the same criminal offenses, in the same jurisdiction, by the same prosecutor. Like Wojahn, my client had no prior criminal record, was well-educated, a devoted family man with a good paying job. Yet here he was facing the possibility of decades in prison.

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 Posted on March 06, 2024 in Real Estate

How do you remove a squatter in Maryland? When an empty residential unit or vacant buildings become occupied by a person other than an authorized tenant, they are often referred to as a squatter. Squatter law in Maryland does not allow you to remove the unauthorized person without utilizing the legal process.

What is a squatter?

 A squatter is person who has taken physical possession of real property that they do not own, and who has not signed a lease or paid rent for the property. If a person refuses to leave the request of the property owner, they are considered a squatter and may be removed through filing a Complaint for Wrongful Detainer in the District Courts of Maryland.

What is a Complaint for Wrongful Detainer?

Under Section 14-132 of the Real Property Article, a Complaint for Wrongful Detainer is the right cause of action in situations where an individual holds possession of real property without the legal right of possession. A person may not hold possession of property unless the person is entitled to possession of the property under the law. A Complaint for Wrongful Detainer will not be successful if (1) the person in actual possession of the property has been granted possession under a court order, (2) a remedy is available through a Failure to Pay Rent, Breach of Lease and/or Tenant Holding Over action, or (3) there is any other means to recover possession of the property.

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 Posted on March 01, 2024 in Business Counseling, Litigation & Transactions

What is the Corporate Transparency Act?

In 2021, Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) as part of the sprawling National Defense Authorization Act.[1] The law, which took effect January 1, 2024, "packs a significant regulatory punch, requiring most entities incorporated under State law to disclose personal stakeholder information to the Treasury Department’s criminal enforcement arm."[2]  Entities covered by the law include, with some exceptions, corporations, limited liability companies, and similar entities created in the United States by filing documentation with the secretary of state or similar office, or formed under foreign law and registered to do business in the United States.[3]  Failure to report can result in both civil and criminal penalties.[4]

Case Ruling the Corporate Transparency Act Unconstitutional

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 Posted on December 20, 2023 in Real Estate

New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023

Rental License Needed for ALL Eviction Cases

Pursuant to Senate Bill 100, effective October 1, 2023, if a county or municipality requires a rental license, a landlord MUST have a rental license to file any of the following actions:

• Failure to Pay Rent
• Tenant Holding Over
• Breach of Lease.

If a landlord does not have the required license, the landlord cannot seek eviction of a tenant. The only exceptions are:

(1) the landlord is not licensed because of a wrongful act of the tenant (regardless of intention), that caused the licensing authority to suspend, revoke, or refuse to grant or renew the rental licenses.
(2) the landlord is not licensed because of an administrative error or omission by the local licensing authority that caused the licensing authority to suspend, revoke, or refuse to grant or renew the rental license.
(3) the unit is part of a multi-unit property where there is one license for multiple units, and the entire multi-unit property is unlicensed because of a condition affecting another unit (and not the unit at issue).

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 Posted on October 18, 2023 in Business Counseling, Litigation & Transactions

Employers must be aware of, and revise their employment-related documents to reflect, the recent changes to Maryland and federal law.  One of a Company’s most powerful way to deter future litigation is by ensuring that its agreements, handbooks, and policies are legally compliant.

Companies often face claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation by their employees.  As such, it is imperative that employers are cognizant of the Maryland legislature’s substantial expansion of anti-discrimination and harassment laws.  With the passage of SB 450, the Maryland legislature adopted a less stringent standard of determining harassment, allowing employees to establish that they have been the subject of harassment based on the "totality of the circumstances." Additionally, Maryland has imposed greater requirements for employers to reasonably accommodate not only employees’ disabilities but also an applicants’ disabilities.  Finally, the Office of the Attorney General can now independently initiate investigations of federal and state civil rights violations and file a lawsuit on behalf of the employees in Maryland, making it even more essential that employers properly handle complaints of discrimination. 

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 Posted on July 21, 2023 in Real Estate

Pet Protections During Evictions

Pursuant to House Bill 102, effective June 1, 2023, a landlord and law enforcement carrying out an eviction have the following obligations with regard to any action for possession of real property (nonpayment of rent, tenant holding over, breach of lease, or wrongful detainer):

(1) Upon eviction, the unit must be immediately inspected for any pet;
(2) If there is any such pet, give it to the tenant or other person in possession;
(3) If there is a pet but the tenant or person in possession is not present, the law enforcement official must contact an animal shelter or rescue organization to take custody of the pet and the landlord must cooperate.

A pet MAY NOT be removed from the unit following an eviction and left outdoors but must remain in the unit until the foregoing steps are completed.

Further, beginning November 1, 2023, at the execution of a lease, the landlord MUST include with the lease a link to a fact sheet to be published by the Department of Agriculture regarding how a person may care for and protect any pets in the event the person is evicted. Further, effective November 1, 2021, the Maryland Judiciary MUST include a link to the same fact sheet with any Warrant of Restitution issued by the Court.

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 Posted on July 20, 2023 in Criminal Defense

Section 16-303(d) of the Transportation Article of the Maryland Code criminalizes driving while your "license or privilege to drive is revoked in this State." A new reported opinion from the Appellate Court of Maryland clarifies that to obtain a conviction for driving on a revoked license, the State must prove that the driver knew or was willfully blind to the fact of his or her revocation.

The case, Christian Eric Adkins v. State of Maryland, involved a challenge to the trial court’s refusal to instruct the jury that the State needed to prove that the driver had knowledge of his revocation. Rather than give the instruction, the judge simply read the statute, which does not specifically mention the knowledge element. The Appellate Court of Maryland held that the requested instruction should have been given because the statute requires proof of knowledge to convict.

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 Posted on July 20, 2023 in Real Estate

What do I need to do to file a Failure to Pay Rent Case in Baltimore City? Baltimore City landlords must comply with registration, inspection, and licensing requirements before initiating Nonpayment of Rent actions in rent court.

Residential landlords that anticipate the need to file a Failure to Pay Rent Complaint in the coming weeks and/or months should be aware of recent changes to Baltimore City’s licensing scheme which requires housing providers to have a rental unit registered, inspected, and licensed before a landlord is able to utilize rent court to collect unpaid rent.

Residential Landlord Requirements in Baltimore City

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 Posted on July 15, 2023 in Family Law

The Child Support Administration is required by law to review the Child Support Guidelines every 4 years to ensure that application of the Child Support Guidelines results in appropriate child support awards. The Child Support Administration must report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly. During the 2020 Legislative Session, the General Assembly passed changes to Maryland’s child support laws, some of which took effect on July 1, 2022. One year later, this post discusses the changes to Maryland’s child support laws and the impact of these developments.

Changes to the Child Support Guidelines

Effective July 1, 2022, the schedule of basic child support obligations increased for parents with a combined adjusted actual income greater than $19,200 per year. This change recognizes that the costs of raising children have increased.

Prior to July 1, 2022, the Child Support Guidelines provided a schedule of basic child support obligations for parents with a combined adjusted actual income between $100 and $15,000 per month. Under the old version of the statute, the court was authorized to use its discretion to set the amount of child support when the combined adjusted actual income of the parents exceeded $15,000 per month. For parents with a combined adjusted actual income between $100 and $1,200 per month, the old version of the statute provided a basic child support obligation of $20 to $150 per month, based on resources and living expenses of the obligor and the number of children due support.

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 Posted on July 12, 2023 in Divorce

If you are considering filing for divorce in Maryland, your filing must include the grounds, or basis, for the divorce. Beginning this fall, selecting the grounds when filing for divorce will become an easier determination. During the 2023 Legislative Session, the General Assembly passed bills eliminating limited divorce in Maryland and changing the grounds available for an absolute divorce. On May 16, 2023, Governor Moore signed Senate Bill 36,which was cross-filed with House Bill 14, into law. The new version of Md. Code, Family Law § 7-103 will become effective on October 1, 2023, and will apply to all divorce cases filed on or after that date.

Current Law through September 20, 2023

Maryland law currently provides for two different types of divorce: limited divorce and absolute divorce. An absolute divorce is a permanent end to the marriage. An absolute divorce severs all legal ties between the parties and allows the parties to resume use of a former name or remarry if they choose. In contrast, a limited divorce does not end the marriage. A limited divorce allows a person who does not satisfy the grounds for absolute divorce and cannot reach an agreement with their spouse to ask the court to order temporary relief regarding child custody, child support, alimony, and use of real or personal property. Because a limited divorce is not a permanent end to the marriage, the court may revoke a limited divorce at any time if both spouses jointly request that the limited divorce be revoked. The differences between these two types of divorce and the grounds for each are explained in more detail in Common Questions about Divorce in Maryland.

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