The U.S. District Court for Maryland made a noteworthy ruling in Jackson v. Johnson, a Maryland auto tort case that is an interesting case that involves federal diversity law and interesting plaintiffs’ lawyer tactics in finding their preferred venue for the case. Plaintiffs’ Venue Tactics on Full Display The Battleground…
I was in Florida after Christmas and missed the Maryland Court of Special Appeals’ opinion in Ayala v. Lee, a truck collision case in Anne Arundel County where the plaintiffs were two undocumented aliens who were rear-ended near Annapolis. After crossing the Bay Bridge, the driver of the plaintiffs’ vehicle…
Mark Mixter and James Farmer are two Maryland tort lawyers that just don’t like each other. There are lots of attorneys that don’t like each other. Lawyers are probably more confrontational and competitive than your average bear. If you doubt this premise, go watch a lawyers’ league softball…
The Maryland high court last week suspended an attorney indefinitely for failure to honor a lien against his client’s case. He has a right to reapply to the bar after 6 months. Two clients had small injury cases that collectively settled for a little over $25,000. The Food Employees’ Labor…
The Maryland Court of Appeals decided this morning Chesson v. Montgomery Mutual, a mold exposure workers’ compensation case. I don’t handle mold or workers’ comp cases. But this case has implications for any tort cases involving the question of what opinions an expert can render at trial. Experts almost always…
I have a theory. My theory is that under Maryland law, insurance companies have an obligation to their insureds to tender the policy limits in a case as soon as a reasonable, prudent insurance company would realize that they must do so to protect the interests of their client. My…
Last month, in Curry v. Trustmark Insurance, a Maryland District Court judge made an interesting ruling in a breach of contract case involving disability payments. The judge granted summary judgment for the defendant. While not a tort claim, this opinion deals with a lot of issues we face as personal…
If you want to file a medical malpractice claim in Maryland, jump through 1,000 hoops and, if you skip even one, it might be fatal to your case. In Heavenly Days Crematorium v. Harris Smariga, we look at the loops and the hoops you have to jump through to sue…
Lots of big opinions coming down from the Maryland Court of Appeals lately. In a tight decision- much tighter than I would have predicted – our high court affirmed long-standing Maryland laws that protect bars and restaurants who serve people they know or have reason to know, will drive drunk,…
The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled today that Maryland will not make the leap to comparative negligence, choosing instead to defer to the legislature. The court has the power to change the law; it wants you to know. But it chooses not to do so. Contributory negligence still inexplicably remains…