Who was Maryland’s First Female Appellate Attorney?
In 2006 and upon the realization that “the State’s history of female lawyers was lost” on members of the Bar and the general public,[1] Judge Lynne A. Battaglia founded The Finding Justice Project, which resulted in extensive historical research and the publication of Finding Justice: A History of Women Lawyers in Maryland Since 1642 (“Finding Justice”).[2]
In the spirit of Finding Justice, I ask – Who was Maryland’s first female appellate attorney?[3]
Read More…Introduction to Co-Managers of the Maryland Appellate Blog.
As the Maryland appellate courts have made historic changes with their official name changes, the Maryland Appellate Blog is excited to introduce its own updates with three new Co-Managers! Read more to learn more about each co-manager, their introduction to appellate law, and vision for the Blog.
Read More…Talking About Maryland’s Appellate Courts in the Past Tense
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
Last month, Maryland voters approved a constitutional amendment renaming our appellate courts—with the Court of Appeals becoming the Supreme Court of Maryland, and the Court of Special Appeals becoming the Appellate Court of Maryland. Judges of the Supreme Court of Maryland will now be “Justices.”
Since then, lawyers have kept asking me the same question: “If I’m discussing a pre-name-change decision, do I use the new names and titles?”
Read More…Maryland Appellate Courts’ “Highlighted Cases” Pages Offer a Primer on Motions Practice
Motions are seldom the feature of an appellate opinion, but often play a prominent role in moving your case, efficiently and effectively, through the appellate process. Title 8 of the Maryland Rules, in Rules 8-431, 8-603 and others, impose requirements on the motion’s timing, scope, contents and appearance, as well as any response. The court may rule quickly, particularly when the motion is filed before the brief, and even dismiss an appeal on the court’s own initiative (see Rule 8-602(a)). While you may be looking forward to the next edition of the Appellate Practice for the Maryland Lawyer: State and Federal, for updates on the Motions Practice in State Appellate Courts chapter (as the author of that chapter, I certainly am!), consider in the meantime the “Highlighted Cases” pages of the Court of Appeals and Court of Special Appeals, each providing in real time examples of motions, responses and rulings. These websites are a helpful primer to appellate practitioners, whether you are seasoned or green.
In other news, the Maryland Appellate Blog wishes to congratulate one of our own, Brad McCullough, on his appointment to the Circuit Court for Montgomery County. He has been a Blog editor and colleague since we started in 2013. We will miss him, but our loss is Maryland’s gain.
MSBA Appellate Practice Skills Program: July 18, 20 & 21
The MSBA, joined by the editors of the Appellate Practice for the Maryland Lawyer: State and Federal (Paul Mark Sandler, Andrew D. Levy, and Steven M. Klepper), judges of the Court of Appeals and Court of Special Appeals, practitioners, and representatives from the Office of the Public Defender and Office of the Attorney General, are introducing a comprehensive appellate practice skills workshop. The three-day virtual event will run on Monday July 18, Wednesday, July 20 and Thursday July 21. For a full agenda, list of presenters and registration information, click here.
Maryland Courts Spring Forward with In-Person Oral Arguments in March and New Appellate Rules for April 2022
(Update: On February 25, 2022, the Court of Appeals issued two notices regarding COVID-19 related protocols for oral arguments: (1) Protocols for oral arguments on March 3 & 4, 2022; and (2) Protocols for oral arguments on March 7 & 8, 2022).
By Michael Wein
It appears all the appellate Courts for Maryland are returning for in-person oral arguments by March 2022. This has some déjà vu from a previous “optimistic” blog post, pre-Delta and pre-Omicron variant, from June 2021. There will hopefully not be any further quick and surprising Court shutdowns, as my August 2021 post relayed. Additionally, as discussed below, new appellate Rules have been approved in the past month by the Maryland Court of Appeals, taking effect on April 1, 2022, applying to many upcoming appellate Briefs.
In-Person Oral Argument Updates
In the past few weeks, there has been an announcement of in-person orals in the following courts for Maryland practitioners:
- The Maryland Court of Special Appeals has posted “[t]he Court will hold its March 2022 oral arguments in-person at the Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building. Counsel in cases scheduled for March arguments will receive notice from the Clerk with oral argument protocols.” This is after a few months of Remote arguments due to the Omicron variant.
- The Federal Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals after a few months reverting to the Zoom hearings due to Omicron, will have in-person oral arguments for their March 8-11, 2022 Session, in Richmond, Virginia.
- The Maryland Court of Appeals has not yet specified if their March 2022 oral arguments are to be in-person. However, with the Friday, Feb. 18, 2022’s Orders from Chief Judge Joseph Getty, the State of Maryland is resuming Phase 5 normal operations, including jury trials on March 7, 2022. It would thus be unsurprising if an announcement is received any day. It is possible that some of the oral arguments scheduled from March 3 through March 8, 2022, might be done remotely via Zoom, but my anticipation, particularly with the Court of Special Appeals’ announcement, they will all be done in-person, assuming the participating attorneys have confirmed availability, are not suffering COVID-symptoms, and are properly vaccinated.
In-Person Appellate Oral Arguments Ended Suddenly with a Bang, and are Restarting Slowly with Anticipated Full Strength in the Fall.
By: Michael Wein
What happened in March 2020 was an abrupt departure for everyone, and a surprisingly long segue from normal. This post provides an update. As outlined in detail in previous posts for this Blog, the Maryland and Federal Appellate Courts (which include Maryland), suddenly postponed Oral arguments in March 2020. They also had the unenviable task transitioning to Remote Oral Arguments for the first time. It’s been that way for about a year.
Assuming T.S. Eliot is a legal authority (he’s not, but fun to quote) and as a matter of transitive logic, a “bang” wouldn’t signify the end of the world…only a whimper. Thus, there will be a resumption of normal. [1]
Read More…The Singular “They” Reaches the White House, But Not the Appellate Courts
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
Within hours of his inauguration, President Biden signed his Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation. The Executive Order began:
Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or whom they love. Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports. Adults should be able to earn a living and pursue a vocation knowing that they will not be fired, demoted, or mistreated because of whom they go home to or because how they dress does not conform to sex-based stereotypes. People should be able to access healthcare and secure a roof over their heads without being subjected to sex discrimination. All persons should receive equal treatment under the law, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Focus on the first sentence. It uses the singular “they,” instead of “he or she,” to refer to an indeterminate person. That’s no coincidence in an order addressing discrimination based on gender identity.
The phrase “he or she” rests on the erroneous assumption that everyone is either a “he” or a “she.” Non-binary individuals do not identify as men or women. The easy fix is to write in plain English and use the singular “they,” just like the White House does.
I’ve written on this issue before—urging judges to abandon “he or she” and expressly embrace the singular “they” (in the same way they endorsed the “cleaned up” parenthetical). My proposal made no headway, so far as I can tell. The phrase “he or she” continues to appear regularly in Maryland appellate opinions. In the words of Arlo Guthrie, however, “I’m not proud … or tired.”
Read More…The Singular “They” in Legal Writing
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
There are few writing conventions as cumbersome as “he or she.” It’s not natural English. If you were to see the silhouette of a backlit person on the street, would you ask, “Who is he or she?” Or, like a normal person, would you ask, “Who are they?”
Nevertheless, teachers and professors drilled into me that the singular “they” was barbarism. The one exception was a common phrase like “to each their own,” because “to each his or her own” was an awkward bridge too far. “He or she” was necessary to be both inclusive and grammatically correct, even as writing otherwise moved in the direction of natural language.
This issue arises frequently in legal writing, which often involves discussions about a hypothetical individual, such as the “reasonable person.” I’ve used tricks to avoid the “he or she” problem. “If a Marylander wishes to apply for a license, he or she must first do X,” easily becomes “If Marylanders wish to apply for licenses, they must first do X.” But that work-around can be awkward, especially when overused.
It’s also a cop out. My family (traditional and chosen) includes non-binary people who use they/them pronouns. It’s important to non-binary people that we use their correct pronouns. It can cause them genuine distress to insist on using binary pronouns.
I’m sure some will read this post and cry “political correctness!” When it comes to legal writing, however, it’s a matter of legal correctness. Read More…
What Kim Kardashian and Prince William Can Teach Us About Remote Oral Arguments
The COVID-19 pandemic has given us all innumerable “new normals.” Even appellate practitioners, whom the Daily Record recently described as “relatively unscathed” by the pandemic, have had to change how they conduct business. This is especially so when it comes time to present oral arguments. Read More…
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