Civil Actions And Procedures
Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Noneconomic Damages - Personal Injury and Wrongful Death [SB-584]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
[Healthcare ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Criminal Justice ]
Repealing certain limitations on noneconomic damages in civil actions for personal injury or wrongful death; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Sen. William Smith
Hearing 2/11 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/30/2025
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Gettr Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Immunity - Disclosure of Allegations of Sexually Assaultive Behavior (Stop Silencing Survivors Act) [SB-549]
[Crime ]
[Human Rights ]
[Public Safety ]
[Data Privacy ]
Establishing an immunity from liability for a person who discloses information about allegations of sexually assaultive behavior if the person acts in good faith; establishing a presumption of good faith unless it is shown by clear and convincing evidence that the person acted with actual malice or intentionally or recklessly disclosed false information; providing for the award of attorney's fees and costs in certain circumstances; etc.
Sponsored by: Sen. Cheryl Kagan
Hearing 2/06 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/28/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Sexual Deepfake Representations and Revenge Porn [HB-663]
[Data Privacy ]
[Technology and Innovation ]
[Crime ]
[Public Safety ]
Authorizing a person to bring and maintain a civil action for defamation against another person who distributes a computer-generated visual representation that is indistinguishable from an actual visual representation of the person and falsely depicts the person with his or her intimate parts exposed or engaged in sexual activity; clarifying what constitutes a visual representation for a certain prohibition against distributing a certain visual representation in a certain manner; etc.
Sponsored by: Rep. Lesley Lopez
Hearing Canceled on 02/17/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Unsolicited Obscene Material [HB-670]
[Technology and Innovation ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Data Privacy ]
[Public Safety ]
[Cybersecurity ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Crime ]
Prohibiting a person from knowingly sending by electronic means to another person an image or video depicting obscene material that the sender knows or reasonably should know is unsolicited; authorizing a person to bring an action against a person who violates the Act; and exempting certain entities and individuals from the Act.
Sponsored by: Rep. Lesley Lopez
Hearing Canceled on 02/17/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Immunity - Disclosure of Allegations of Sexually Assaultive Behavior (Stop Silencing Survivors Act) [HB-629]
[Crime ]
[Human Rights ]
[Public Safety ]
[Data Privacy ]
Establishing an immunity from liability for a person who discloses information about allegations of sexually assaultive behavior if the person acts in good faith; establishing a presumption of good faith unless it is shown by clear and convincing evidence that the person acted with actual malice or intentionally or recklessly disclosed false information; providing for the award of attorney's fees and costs in certain circumstances; etc.
Sponsored by: Rep. Heather Bagnall
Hearing 2/12 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/27/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Motor Vehicle Accidents Involving Vulnerable Individuals - Comparative Negligence [HB-594]
[Transportation and Motor Vehicles ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Public Safety ]
[Law Enforcement ]
Prohibiting recovery by a certain plaintiff from being barred in a certain civil action due to the plaintiff's negligence, except under certain circumstances; requiring any damages awarded under the Act to be diminished in proportion to the amount of negligence attributed to the plaintiff; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Rep. Robbyn Lewis
Hearing Canceled on 02/17/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Artificial Intelligence - Causing Injury or Death - Civil and Criminal Liability [HB-589]
[Artificial Intelligence ]
[Technology and Innovation ]
[Cybersecurity ]
[Public Safety ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Criminal Justice ]
Establishing that a person who intentionally, knowingly, or negligently designs or creates artificial intelligence software able to cause physical injury or death is strictly liable for damages and subject to a civil penalty if the software is used to cause personal injury or death; and prohibiting a person from intentionally, knowingly, or negligently designing or creating artificial intelligence software able to cause injury or death.
Sponsored by: Rep. Robin Grammer
Hearing 2/11 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/27/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Unhoused Individuals - Rights, Civil Action, and Affirmative Defense [SB-484]
[Housing ]
[Human Rights ]
[Poverty ]
[Public Safety ]
[Community Development ]
[Crime ]
[Criminal Justice ]
Providing that all unhoused individuals have certain rights; authorizing the Attorney General or an individual harmed by a violation of the Act to bring a certain civil action against a political subdivision, a unit of State or local government, or a government official; establishing an affirmative defense of necessity to certain criminal charges relating to trespass or disturbing the peace; and repealing the authority of a municipality to prohibit vagrancy.
Sponsored by: Sen. Charles Muse
Hearing 2/06 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/24/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Unhoused Individuals - Rights, Civil Action, and Affirmative Defense [HB-487]
[Housing ]
[Human Rights ]
[Poverty ]
[Public Safety ]
[Community Development ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Criminal Justice ]
[Human Services ]
Providing that all unhoused individuals have certain rights; authorizing the Attorney General or an individual harmed by a violation of the Act to bring a certain civil action against a political subdivision, a unit of State or local government, or a government official; establishing an affirmative defense of necessity to certain criminal charges relating to trespass or disturbing the peace; and repealing the authority of a municipality to prohibit vagrancy.
Sponsored by: Rep. Bernice Mireku-North
Hearing 2/12 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/27/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Child Nonsexual Abuse and Neglect - Damages and Statute of Limitations [HB-456]
[Children and Youth ]
[Crime ]
[Criminal Justice ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
Establishing a certain statute of limitations in certain civil actions relating to child nonsexual abuse and neglect; establishing a limitation of $1,500,000 on noneconomic damages that may be awarded under the Act; providing that a certain party may appeal an interlocutory order under certain circumstances; applying the Act prospectively and retroactively to certain actions barred by a certain statute of limitations; etc.
Sponsored by: Rep. Dana Stein
Hearing 2/13 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/27/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Revenge Porn - Definition of Visual Representation and Civil Action [SB-360]
[Crime ]
[Data Privacy ]
[Public Safety ]
Defining the term "visual representation" as it relates to the crime of revenge porn to be an unaltered image of the person or an image created with or without using other existing depictions of the person that is indistinguishable from the person, from the perspective of an ordinary person; and authorizing a person to bring a civil action for revenge porn.
Sponsored by: Sen. William Smith
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 219 on 04/22/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Distribution of Obscene Material to Minors and Age Verification Information [HB-394]
[Children and Youth ]
[Data Privacy ]
[Technology and Innovation ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Public Safety ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Cybersecurity ]
[Crime ]
Establishing that a commercial entity that distributes obscene material to minors on the Internet from certain websites is liable for certain damages; and prohibiting a commercial entity or third party that performs a certain age verification of an individual from retaining any identifying information of an individual under certain circumstances.
Sponsored by: Rep. Robin Grammer
Hearing Canceled on 02/03/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Medical Debt - Complaints for Money Judgment and Real Property Liens [SB-349]
[Healthcare ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Property Tax ]
Establishing certain requirements for a complaint for a money judgment for medical debt; defining "medical debt" as a debt owed by a consumer to a person, the person's agent or assignee for the provision of medical services, products, or devices; providing that medical debt does not include debt charged to a credit card except under certain circumstances; prohibiting the creation of a lien on owner-occupied residential property for the payment of medical debt; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Sen. Sara Love
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 497 on 05/13/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Consumer Protection - Consumer Contracts - Limitation Periods [HB-431]
[Consumer Protection ]
Prohibiting a consumer contract from setting a shorter time to bring an action under or on the consumer contract than required by the law of the State; excluding certain entities from the application of this Act; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Rep. Vaughn Stewart
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 194 on 04/22/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Courts - Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation [HB-434]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
[Crime ]
[Criminal Justice ]
Altering the conditions under which a lawsuit is considered a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP suit); altering the conditions under which a defendant in a SLAPP suit is not civilly liable for certain communications; establishing certain standards and requirements relating to a motion to dismiss an alleged SLAPP suit; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Rep. Samuel Rosenberg
Hearing 2/12 At 1:00 P.m. on 01/27/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Civil Actions - Tortious Injury to or Death of Pet - Compensatory Damages (Buddy's Law) [HB-438]
[Animals ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
Increasing from $10,000 to $25,000 the maximum amount of compensatory damages that may be awarded to an owner of a pet from a person who tortiously causes an injury to or death of the pet while acting individually or through an animal under the person's ownership, direction, or control.
Sponsored by: Rep. Nicholaus Kipke
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 101 on 04/22/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Medical Debt - Complaints for Money Judgment and Real Property Liens [HB-428]
[Healthcare ]
[Consumer Protection ]
[Real Estate ]
[Housing ]
Establishing certain requirements for a complaint for a money judgment; defining "medical debt" as a debt owed by a consumer to a provider of medical services, products, or devices, but does not include debt charged to a credit card except under certain circumstances; prohibiting the creation of a lien on owner-occupied residential property by contract or as a result of a breach of contract for the payment of medical debt; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Rep. Anne Kaiser
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 498 on 05/13/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Maryland Tort Claims Act - Employees of an Office of a Sheriff [SB-271]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
Providing that an employee of the office of a sheriff of a county or Baltimore City is immune from liability under the Maryland Tort Claims Act in the same manner as a sheriff or deputy sheriff.
Sponsored by: Sen. Michael Jackson
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 133 on 04/22/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Courts - Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation [SB-167]
[Law Enforcement ]
[Public Safety ]
[Crime ]
[Criminal Justice ]
Altering the conditions under which a lawsuit is considered a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP suit); altering the conditions under which a defendant in a SLAPP suit is not civilly liable for certain communications; establishing certain standards and requirements relating to a motion to dismiss an alleged SLAPP suit; and applying the Act prospectively.
Sponsored by: Sen. Shelly Hettleman
Hearing 1/15 At 12:00 P.m. on 01/09/2025
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Maryland 2025 Regular Session
Peace Orders and Criminal Harassment - Intentional Visual Surveillance [HB-236]
[Crime ]
[Criminal Justice ]
[Public Safety ]
[Law Enforcement ]
Expanding the relief that may be included in a final peace order; altering the acts that constitute criminal harassment to include certain visual surveillance of an area of another person's residence where the other has a reasonable expectation of privacy; and providing that a person who violates the Act is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction for a first offense is subject to imprisonment of up to 90 days or a fine of $500 or both, and for a second or subsequent offense, imprisonment of up to 180 days or a fine of $1,000 or both.
Sponsored by: Rep. Frank Conaway
Approved By The Governor - Chapter 574 on 05/13/2025