The “Maryland Rules” regulate the practice, procedure, and judicial administration of Maryland courts. These Rules are based on the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure Rules and adopted by the Maryland Court of Appeals.
The most recent Rules Order is dated June 6, 2016 and was effective July 1, 2016 and is the implementation of the 178th Report. Among other changes, this rules order involves a major reorganization of the titles in the rules dealing with Court Administration; Judges and Judicial Appointees; and Attorneys. A printout of the 178th Report can be found in the law library shelved with the Maryland Code and Rules. It consists of 553 pages! The full text of the new rules can also be found in Maryland Advance Reports, September 2, 2016, #36.
The Maryland Rules of Procedure are available in a number of formats from different publishers. It is important to note that even though the most recent Rules Order is dated June 6, 2016 not all of these formats reflect those changes. Basically, the online versions and one print version are current:
CURRENT:
- Lexis rules online (lexis.com and free reflects the 178th Report Rules Order of 6/6/2016
- Westlaw rules online (WestlawNext and free reflects the 178th Report Rules Order of 6/16/2016
- Maryland Advance Reports, September 2, 2016, #36 contains the text of the rules affected by the June 6, 2016 Rules Order.
- West Maryland Rules of Court (print) with supplement reflects the 178th Report Rules Order of 6/6/2016
NOT CURRENT:
- Maryland Rules (print) published by LexisNexis are current only through 4/4/2016
- Annotated Code of Maryland Rules (print) are current only through 2/1/2016
To make sure the rules you are using are current, it is a good idea to check the postings on the webpage of the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure Rules at Mdcourts.gov and compare with the “current as of” information in whichever version you are using.
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