Tag: selfhelp

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lawlibrary

What’s new…

New from the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA)!

Protective & Peace Order Cases in Maryland: A Practice Manual

The law library has acquired a 1st edition of Protective & Peace Order Cases in Maryland: A Practice Manual. Developed by a team of expert Maryland attorneys, clinical professors, and advocacy directors, this manual is an in-depth guide that provides a complete overview from beginning to end for initiating your petition. The manual includes the latest legislative changes and official forms for Petitions for Protection, Addendums for Respondent Descriptions, and Requests to Withhold Address from public access. It also provides expert advice on which path to take and where a peace order or protective order is right for you in terms of the eligibility requirements. Lastly, the manual provides the specialized knowledge required for post-judgment enforcement, record shielding, and navigating the critical differences between de novo circuit court appeals and Appellate Court reviews.

Call No.: KFM1294. P76 2026

AACPLL Peace Order & Protective Order:

The law library has created new and revised pages for Peace Order and Protective Order, which have been added to our wiki. They are available and ready for your review at this time.

Peace Orders and Protective Orders:

The FAQs provide links to assistance background information, legal resources, and referrals related to Peace Orders and Protective Orders in Maryland. The materials are intended for educational purposes only and are not legal advice.

Assistance and Support Services:

Maryland Court Help Center (Remote)

District Court Help Center (In-Person)

Online Educational Resources

Maryland Courts Resources

The Maryland Courts materials explain both protective and peace orders, including who may qualify, the difference between the two types of orders, and the protections available for each. The materials also describe the filing process, required forms, court procedures, hearing expectations, and how long interim, temporary, and final orders may remain in effect.

Maryland Access to Justice Videos

Maryland’s educational video series explain how each type of order work, court expectations, steps in the process, the protections available to the petitioner, and the responsibilities of respondents throughout the process.

People’s Law Library

The People’s Law Library of Maryland articles provides clear and user-friendly explanations of protective and peace orders, frequently asked questions, and comparisons between the two types of orders. These articles are especially useful for self-represented litigants.

Maryland Safe at Home Program

The Maryland Secretary of State’s “Safe at Home” Address Confidentiality Program helps victims protect their location information. This resource was created with the intention to assist victims of domestic violence, stalking, and individuals concerned about safety and privacy.

Library Resources

Our library collection also contains :

Where to find the FAQ pages:

Resource: Anne Arundel County Family Law Resources

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lawlibrary

What’s new…

New from NOLO, a leading source for legal self-help!

Nolo’s Essential Guide to Child Custody & Support, 6th ed.

The law library has acquired a new edition of Nolo’s Essential Guide to Child Custody & Support.

This edition will help you learn how to:

  • negotiate and use mediation to keep costs down and improve future dealings with your ex
  • find your state’s child support guidelines
  • advocate for the custody arrangements you want
  • enforce and change custody and support orders
  • anticipate how your case will be handled by a judge if you go to trial
  • recognize the situations where you need a lawyer, and
  • work with a lawyer.

You’ll also find information on subjects such as what judges consider when they rule on custody arrangements, and what happens when one parent wants to move away with the children.

Call No.: SELF HELP KF 547.A15 N65 2024

Additionally, this guide is ideal for those interested in negotiating agreements with your former partner on topics like:

  • enforcing custody and support orders
  • modifying agreements when your circumstances change
  • finding custody and support rules for your state
  • avoiding a destructive court battle

Legal Research: How to Find & Understand the Law, 20th ed.

Legal Research: How to Find & Understand the Law is perfect, as it guides people through the basics of legal research, whether it is for work, school, or home.

The basics of of legal research shows you how to:

  • make sure your research is current
  • locate the best legal resources online or in a law library
  • understand and help locate statutes, cases, and regulations
  • use the most current research methods so you approach your legal issue like an attorney, and

Call No.: SELF HELP KF242.A1 E43 2024

Represent Yourself in Court: Prepare & Try a Winning Civil Case, 12th ed.

Represent Yourself in Court: Prepare & Try a Winning Civil Case, is ideal for handling a case on your own from start to finish. This guide provides easy-to-understand steps in the pretrial and trial process. With this guide you will be prepared to: draft and file court papers

  • get help from an attorney or legal coach
  • obtain and prepare your evidence, including social media posts
  • handle depositions
  • line up, prepare, and examine witnesses
  • present an opening statement
  • make and respond to objections
  • pick a jury if necessary, and
  • deal with the court clerk and judge.

If seeking help handling bankruptcy, divorce, landlord-tenant dispute, breach of contract case, small business dispute, or any other civil lawsuit, this book will help you handle your case.

Call No.: SELF HELP KF242.A1 E43 2024

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lawlibrary

What’s new…

New from the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA)!

The law library has acquired a 1st edition of the Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law: The Essential Guide.

The edition includes a comprehensive coverage of eviction actions and principals ways in which one can regain repossession, essential pre-tenancy guidance, statutory compliance, local licensing reference, as well as emerging legal protections.

If interested in an overview of rights and remedies available to both parties, you will want to check this guide out.

Call No.: KFM1317 .S63 2026

The following title has arrived and is also available:

Fair Debt Collection, 2026 ed.

The library has acquired a new edition of Fair Debt Collection from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC).

This new edition is the leading treatise on the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the statute that dramatically alters how collection agencies, debt buyers and attorneys collect consumer debts. The book is authored by experts who bring decades of experience on FDCPA litigation, legislation, and interpretations. Now including The FDCPA Case Connector, a searchable database of 14,000 FDCPA case holdings.

Call No.: SELF HELP NCLC KF1024 .H63 2026

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lawlibrary

What’s New… 

Book cover for Maryland Divorce and Separation Law, 2023 (MSBA)

The updated 11th edition of MSBA’s Maryland Divorce and Separation Law (2023) is now on our shelf (catalog record). You can also access the updated text on Lexis in the Law Library. As of today, Westlaw has not yet updated its content from the 10th to 11th editions.

Among the book’s updates is a new section on parenting plans in response to the laws passed in 2020 requiring these plans in custody and/or visitation cases.

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Access to Justice lawlibrary Pro Bono Self Represented

Lawyer in the Library Wrap-up for December and January

In December and January, the Ask A Lawyer in the Library program provided legal advice to seventeen people. Thanks to volunteer attorneys, Steve Migdal, Jack Paltell, Saul McCormick, and Michele Manculich for providing this service to the public. In January we were happy to welcome new volunteer attorney, Patrice Clarke. Issues included student loan debt, landlord/tenant, expungement, estate planning and immigration.

The Ask a Lawyer in the Library program is a civil, non-family law, self-help program held every Wednesday, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and on the 3rd Wednesday from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The program is sponsored by Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service and hosted by the Anne Arundel County Public Library.  You can talk with a volunteer attorney for at least 20 minutes. Registration is required. All sessions are held remotely via Zoom videoconferencing or phone. More information can be found here.

Do you have a family law matter? Family Law matters are best addressed by the Family Court Help Center.

Do you have a criminal case? The Office of the Public Defender provides legal services to eligible individuals. Information about representation in criminal cases can be found here.

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lawlibrary

What’s New… 

Spines of NCLC Automobile Fraud and Warnken's Maryland Criminal Procedure volumes 1 and 2
Covers of NBI titles: Maryland Civil Practice, Procedure, and Forms; Advanced Custody and Support Issues in Maryland; Maryland Real Property Law: Understanding Title, Transfers, and Encumbrances

New and updated titles from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) and the National Business Institute (NBI) are now on our shelves covering used car fraud, custody and child support, real property, civil practice, and criminal procedure. See below:

NCLC 

See all NCLC titles in our catalog. 

NBI

See all NBI titles in our catalog. 

MSBA 

See all MSBA titles in our catalog. 

Categories
lawlibrary Maryland Law

Legal Resources on Adoption

“Air Force family adopts child from Ukraine” from DVIDSHUB is licensed under CC BY 2.0

We now have a resource page on adoption listed on our FAQs page, where you can find relevant laws, online articles, and library materials on adoption law in Maryland.

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Maryland Law Self Represented

Learn About Trusts

Our FAQs page now links to our new resources page on trusts. There, you will find a bibliography of manuals and treatises on the topic, as well as links to relevant statutes, forms, and articles.

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lawlibrary Pro Bono

Lawyer in the Library: Wrap-Up for May 2022

Jack Paltell, Steve Migdal, and William Moomau were the “Lawyers in the Library” this month providing legal assistance with such issues as deeds, eviction, debt collection, contracts and homeowner associations.

“Ask a Lawyer in the Library” is held every Wednesday of the month from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. and on the third Wednesday from 4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. (The evening program will not be held this summer and will resume in September.) You can talk with a volunteer lawyer for at least 20 minutes about your civil, non-family legal problem for free. All sessions are now conducted over Zoom or by phone.

This program is sponsored by Anne Arundel County Local Pro Bono Committee, Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service, and the Anne Arundel Bar Association. It is hosted by the Anne Arundel County Public Library.

Register online here or call the law library for help. Once you have registered, you will be sent a link to an intake sheet. Instructions for meeting with the attorney will be sent once the intake is competed.

Contact the library if you have questions: (phone) 410-222-1387 or (email) AALawLibrarian@mdcourts.gov

Categories
lawlibrary

What’s New…In the Catalog

While it’s in no way new to the library, our FAQs webpage can now be found in our catalog. For those who have never seen it, the FAQs page provides links to our comprehensive resource pages on the most frequently asked-about topics (See the page on bankruptcy, for an example). Each individual resource page also has a new record in our catalog for those who want to search under specific topics.

These pages provide links to statutes, videos, free articles for the layperson, forms, and bibliographies of relevant print resources in the library. If you need help figuring out which resources to start with on the list, we at the law library can point you to those that would be most helpful and relevant to your situation.