New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023

Calling Law Enforcement or Emergency Services No Longer Grounds for Termination

Pursuant to Senate Bill 214, which takes effect on October 1, 2023, Section 8-208 of the Real Property Article which governs prohibited lease provisions has been amended to prohibit a form of lease that limits the ability of a tenant to summons law enforcement or emergency services, and/or penalizes a tenant for summonsing law enforcement or emergency services.

This is particularly relevant in breach of lease cases as it will no longer be a sufficient basis for termination that law enforcement is called to a unit.

If you need assistance with Breach of Lease cases or addressing problematic tenants, please do not hesitate to contact us by phone or e-mail:

Avery Barton Strachan, Esq.
astrachan@silvermanthompson.com
(410) 385-9113
www.silvermanthompson.com/avery-strachan.html

Kerri L. Smith, Esq.
ksmith@silvermanthompson.com
(410) 385-9106
www.silvermanthompson.com/kerri-smith.html

Disclaimer: Local, State and Federal laws, orders, rules and regulations may be modified and updated at any time and without notice. Likewise, orders of the Court and communications regarding Landlord-Tenant actions are also being continuously added, amended and updated. That said, the information provided is based on our current understanding of the laws, orders, rules and regulations that are currently in effect. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you seek legal counsel before initiating any sort of Landlord-Tenant action to ensure that you are acting in compliance with all aspects of any local, Maryland and Federal laws, orders, rules and regulations in effect at that time, as well as all orders of the Court.