During its November 2025 meeting, the Maryland Judiciary’s Standing Committee on Rules considered amendments to Rule 3-325 that would limit discovery in certain civil matters transferred from district to circuit court. The Committee noted that the proposed change arose out of the recent passage of HB 560/SB 46 (Real Property – Wrongful Detainer – Time of Hearing and Service of Process). Public interest attorneys and legal aid organizations opposed the proposal, noting that the amendments would limit discovery by renters who demand a jury trial and would harm vulnerable populations. Attorneys shared that discovery is needed to analyze complex issues of subsidies and rent calculations, and that the majority of these cases settle before trial due to discovery. Although the volume of these cases is low, advocates argued that the impact would be inequitable to tenants and lead to more housing challenges. The Committee did not approve the amendments and remanded the rule to the relevant Subcommittee for further review.
The Committee also considered a change to include access by a petitioner or petitioner’s counsel to Extreme Risk Protective Order (ERPO) filings, following a report by a circuit court clerk who shared that a county attorney, as counsel for a petitioner, requested access to an ERPO case. The attorney was notified by the Judicial Information System (JIS) that pursuant to the statute, the petitioner and petitioner’s attorney are precluded from accessing the records. The relevant statute states, “All court records relating to a petition for an extreme risk protective order made under this subtitle are confidential and the contents may not be divulged, by subpoena or otherwise, except by order of the court on good cause shown.” The statute goes on to make several exceptions, including the respondent and counsel for the respondent, but does not mention the petitioner and attorney for the petitioner.
MSBA filed a letter of support for the proposed rule change on the principles of due process and for alignment with Health General Article, Section 10-630 to allow access to certain individuals, including petitioner and petitioner’s counsel. After discussing the ambiguity of legislative intent related to the issue as well as a concern of the impact on other cases beyond ERPOs, the Committee remanded the issue to the relevant Subcommittee for further review. The Committee also discussed the need for possible statutory changes in order to allow access through the online JIS system.
Additional meeting materials are available here.
The Supreme Court will hold an Open Meeting on January 12, 2026 to consider the 226th Report of the Committee. The Court will consider amendments to assist the courts in managing the large number of Child Victims Act cases through case consolidation procedures and appointment of a special magistrate.
Anyone wishing to testify at the meeting should notify the Clerk of the Supreme Court ([email protected]) by Thursday, January 8, 2026. In the notice, include your name, contact information (including an email address), and the subject you wish to speak about.