September 2021 Maryland Certiorari Grants, Batch 2
The Maryland Court of Appeals today granted review in two criminal cases.
Read More…September 2021 Maryland Certiorari Grants
The Court of Appeals today granted review in two civil appeals and one criminal appeal. These were the first orders signed by new Chief Judge Getty since his appointment as chief judge took effect on Saturday.
Read More…The Proliferation of Dissents from the Denial of Rehearing En Banc
Each week my email inbox receives links to published opinions released by the Fourth Circuit. When I saw the link for Jane Doe v. Fairfax County School Board, No. 19-2203, I almost did not click on it. It was an order denying rehearing en banc and my first thought was, what could be enlightening about that? Luckily, I thought twice. After all, the Fourth Circuit decided to publish this order, so there must be more to it. Indeed, there was.
The first line of the order reads as one would expect: “The court denies the petition for rehearing en banc.” But what follows is an unexpected exchange between a concurring opinion and two dissenting opinions in which the concurrence writes to “confront” the dissent about a practice that is appearing with more frequency in the Fourth Circuit – dissenting from denials of rehearing en banc.
Read More…“Don’t Say Daubert”? Why Not?
No one likes to arrive at a party just as the fun is ending and the guests are leaving. Yet, within a year of the Court of Appeals completing its two-decade journey towards formally adopting the Daubert standard for admitting expert testimony, see Rochkind v. Stevenson, 471 Md. 1 (2020), a nationwide legal movement has begun rallying behind the slogan “Don’t Say Daubert.” Has Maryland arrived at the Daubert party only to see everyone else leave?
Read More…COSA Now Allows Citation to Other Courts’ Unreported Opinions
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
Until today, the Court of Special Appeals had a policy “not to cite for persuasive value any unreported federal or state court opinion.” In footnotes in a pair of opinions issued today (links here and here), the Court of Special Appeals announced a change in policy:
Read More…Governor Appoints Getty as New Chief, Elevates Gould to COA, Signals Fast Action on Upcoming Vacancies
Governor Larry Hogan today appointed Judge Joseph Getty, who reaches mandatory retirement age in April 2022, to serve as Maryland’s new chief judge for the next seven months. The Governor also appointed Court of Special Appeals Judge Steven Gould to fill the Montgomery County seat on the Court of Appeals. The press release, quoted below, also states that the Governor will immediately begin the process to fill upcoming February and April vacancies on the Court of Appeals.
Read More…Barbera Court Goes 8-for-8 in Deciding Cases by Term’s End
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
In October 2013, three months after becoming Maryland’s top judge, Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera announced a policy under which the Court of Appeals would decide every case the same term in which it heard argument. By August 31 each year, the Court would issue an opinion in all cases heard since the prior September 1.
Read More…August 2021 Maryland Certiorari Grants (Batch 2) Include Beltway Sniper’s Petition
Yesterday, the Maryland Court of Appeals granted review in eight cases. Three involve juvenile life sentences, including that of Lee Boyd Malvo, one of the 2002 “Beltway Snipers.” The Court has calendared the juvenile cases for argument during its January 2022 sitting.
Read More…The Certified Questions Keep on Coming
By Steve Klepper (Twitter: @MDAppeal)
Maryland law allows federal courts to certify questions of state law to the Maryland Court of Appeals. Each annual term, going back to 2014, the Court of Appeals has heard between one and three cases on certification from the the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland.
Last week, in United States v. Dickson, the Fourth Circuit certified the following question to the Court of Appeals: “Under Maryland Law, can an individual be convicted of robbery by means of threatening force against property or threatening to accuse the victim of having committed sodomy?”
Read More…Why We Can’t Have Nice Normal Things Like In-Person Appellate Oral Arguments
[Editor’s update: The Court of Appeals September schedule now shows that it will be holding September arguments by videoconferencing.]
As a previous Post accurately stated on the date of June 9, 2021, “In-Person Appellate Oral Arguments Ended Suddenly with A Bang, and are Restarting Slowly with Anticipated Full Strength in the Fall,” things were looking very positive for regular appellate oral arguments in all Maryland-related State and Federal oral arguments by September or October of 2021 when the respective new Terms began. The Maryland Court of Special Appeals, Maryland Court of Appeals, and Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals had already taken steps towards in-person resumption of oral arguments. The United States Supreme Court had not committed yet, though this was unsurprising as their last oral arguments were in April 2021, with oral arguments beginning again in October 2021.
So for those who have been avoiding the internet and news for the last two months, this situation has become more complex. Most everyone in the United States since July, including judges and members of the Maryland Bar, have had an opportunity to become fully vaccinated. This at the very least, suggests that the virus, though contagious, will not lead to any worries about death or hospitalization when nearly the entirety of those who argue appeals, are done by attorneys.
However, the Delta Variant has somewhat altered things, and it is unclear what if any long-term effect this will have. As an update:
Read More…
Maryland Appellate Blog 