Maryland high court to hear challenge to COVID-related tolling orders

The Maryland Court of Appeals has accepted the following certified question from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland: “Did the Court of Appeals act within its enabling authority under, inter alia, the State Constitution and the State Declaration of Rights when its April 24, 2020 Administrative Order tolled Maryland’s statutes of limitation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic?”

It will hear arguments during its December 2021 session. Judge Stephanie Gallagher’s opinion, finding the question appropriate for certification, is here, and her order is here.

This case is one of four that the Court of Appeals has accepted so far to hear on certified questions during its upcoming 2021 Term. The list is below.

Paul Moore v. RealPage Utility Management, Inc. – Misc. No. 1, September Term, 2021

Certified Question from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

Question: Does Md. Code Ann., Public Utilities § 7-304 prohibit the use of energy allocation equipment and procedures, which have not been approved by the Public Service Comission, to bill energy charges to tenants of properties built prior to 1978?

To be argued in the September, 2021 session of Court.

Jabari Morse Lyles v. Santander Consumer USA Inc. – Misc. No. 3, September Term, 2021

Certified Question from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

Question: If a credit grantor is found to have knowingly violated Credit Grantor Closed End Credit Provisions (“CLEC”), Maryland Code Annotated, Commercial Law §§12-1001, et seq., does CLEC § 12-1018(b) require the credit grantor to return three times: (1) all amounts collected by the credit grantor in excess of the principal amount financed; (2) only those amounts collected that the borrower contends violate the CLEC (in this case, the convenience fee); or (3) some other amount.

To be argued in the October, 2021 session of Court.

Westfield Insurance Company v. Michael Gilliam – Misc. No. 4, September Term, 2021

Certified Question from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

Question: For purposes of determining the reduction of a plaintiff’s underinsured motorist benefits required by Maryland Insurance Code 19-513(e), does Maryland law treat the “write-down,” or the difference between medical bills submitted by a workers’ compensation claimant’s health care provider and the lower amount actually paid by a workers’ compensation insurer to satisfy those bills, pursuant to the Maryland Guide of Medical and Surgical Fees, as “recovered benefits” to the plaintiff under the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Act?

To be argued in the October, 2021 session of Court.

Jesse J. Murphy, et al. v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. – Misc. No. 5, September Term, 2021

Certified Question from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

Question: Did the Court of Appeals act within its enabling authority under, inter alia, the State Constitution and the State Declaration of Rights when its April 24, 2020 Administrative Order tolled Maryland’s statutes of limitation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic?

To be argued in the December, 2021 session of Court.