Silverman Thompson Obtains Permanent Injunction Against University of Maryland
On April 15, 2024, Judge Richard Bennett of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland permanently enjoined the University of Maryland from suspending or preventing the graduation of Silverman Thompson client John Doe, a second-semester senior at College Park. Doe was the subject of a formal complaint of sexual assault filed a year after he attended a fraternity party with a student from another university. The State’s Attorney choose not to proceed with criminal charges against him, but the University proceeded with its internal disciplinary process against Doe and imposed the sanction of expulsion, later reduced to a one-year suspension through the school’s appeal process.
How to File an Appeal in Maryland State Court ─ Circuit Court
You’ve just lost your case in a Maryland trial court and want to appeal – how do you do it? For the purpose of this article, we’ll assume your case is in a Maryland circuit court (different rules may apply if you’re in the district court). We’ll also assume your case allows a direct appeal; most, but not all, cases are of this type. We’ll further assume you want to exercise your right of appeal to Maryland’s intermediate appellate court, called the Appellate Court of Maryland. In very limited cases, there may be a right of direct appeal to the Supreme Court of Maryland. A litigant can also try to skip the intermediate appellate court and go straight to the Supreme Court, but that’s rare. These two situations are beyond the scope of this article.
A Landlord’s Guide to Emotional Support and Service Dogs in Maryland Rental Housing
When are emotional support and/or service animals allowed in rental housing in Maryland?
Plaintiff Drops 3/4 Claims After Firm’s Brief in Renovation Case
Silverman Thompson recently represented a contractor who was hired to renovate a large residential property in Baltimore County. The plaintiff, a subcontractor, filed a lawsuit against the client’s company and the client, individually, alleging that the company and the client individually breached a contract and that our client violated the Maryland Construction Trust Act and the Maryland Prompt Pay Act.
How Do You Get a Baltimore City Rental Property License?
How can you register a rental property in Baltimore City? Effective January 1, 2019, all non-owner-occupied dwelling units, regardless of whether it is a single-family or multi-family dwelling, must be licensed and registered in Baltimore City.
How Do I Remove a Squatter from My Property in Maryland?
How do you remove a squatter in Maryland? When an empty residential unit or vacant buildings become occupied by a person other than an authorized tenant, they are often referred to as a squatter. Squatter law in Maryland does not allow you to remove the unauthorized person without utilizing the legal process.
Case Ruling the Corporate Transparency Act Unconstitutional
What is the Corporate Transparency Act?
In 2021, Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) as part of the sprawling National Defense Authorization Act.[1] The law, which took effect January 1, 2024, “packs a significant regulatory punch, requiring most entities incorporated under State law to disclose personal stakeholder information to the Treasury Department’s criminal enforcement arm.”[2] Entities covered by the law include, with some exceptions, corporations, limited liability companies, and similar entities created in the United States by filing documentation with the secretary of state or similar office, or formed under foreign law and registered to do business in the United States.[3] Failure to report can result in both civil and criminal penalties.[4]
Case Ruling the Corporate Transparency Act Unconstitutional
On March 1, 2024, a federal judge in Alabama ruled that the CTA is unconstitutional. The lawsuit, brought by the National Small Business Association (“NSBA”) and one if its members, argued that the CTA exceeded Congress’s enumerated powers and violated the First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments.[5] The Government defended the law’s constitutionality on various grounds, but the court sided with the challengers.
The court first rejected the Government’s argument that the disclosures required by the CTA were needed to protect vital national security interests and thus fell within Congress’ power over foreign affairs and national security. The court acknowledged the great deference entitled to Congress in these areas, but reasoned that corporations are “creatures of state law,” and Congress’ foreign affairs powers “do not extend to purely internal affairs, especially in an arena traditionally left to the States.”[6]
The court next addressed Congress’s power to enact the CTA under the Commerce Clause. The law could not be upheld as a valid regulation of the channels and instrumentalities of interstate commerce, as the Government argued, because the CTA by its plain text “doesn’t regulate the channels and instrumentalities of commerce or prevent their use for a specific purpose.” The CTA simply mandates that covered entities report information to the Treasury Department without any reference to “commerce” or channels or instrumentalities of commerce.[7] The law also could not be upheld under Congress’ power to regulate intrastate activity having “substantial effects” on interstate commerce because “the CTA does not regulate commerce on its face, contain a jurisdictional hook, or serve as an essential part of a comprehensive regulatory scheme.”[8]
The court finally rejected Congress’s taxing power as a valid basis for the law. The Government argued that because the required information is necessary to ensure appropriate reporting of taxable income, and Treasury officers and employees have access to the information for tax purposes, the CTA was a necessary and proper exercise of Congress’s taxing powers. But, as the court explained, the Government’s theory would allow Congress to “craft a constitutional law [by] simply impos[ing] a disclosure requirement and giv[ing] tax officials access to the information.”
Because the law could not be justified as “an exercise of Congress’s enumerated powers,” the court found it unnecessary to decide whether the CTA violates the First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments.[9]
Future of the Corporate Transparency Act
The decision has been appealed and exempts only the plaintiffs in the case from the CTA’s reporting requirement. Those requirements thus remain in effect for other covered entities across the United States.
The business litigation group at Silverman Thompson offers free consultations at 800.385.2243. If you have any questions regarding the Corporate Transparency Act and your business, reach out to Bill Sinclair, at 410.385.9116.
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023
Summary of Recent Changes to Maryland Employment Law
Employers must be aware of, and revise their employment-related documents to reflect, the recent changes to Maryland and federal law. One of a Company’s most powerful way to deter future litigation is by ensuring that its agreements, handbooks, and policies are legally compliant.
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective October 1, 2023
Calling Law Enforcement or Emergency Services No Longer Grounds for Termination
New Maryland Landlord-Tenant Law Effective June 1, 2023
Pet Protections During Evictions
What Do I Need To Do To File a Failure to Pay Rent Case in Baltimore City?
What do I need to do to file a Failure to Pay Rent Case in Baltimore City? Baltimore City landlords must comply with registration, inspection, and licensing requirements before initiating Nonpayment of Rent actions in rent court.
Understanding The Limits of Your Fiduciary Powers – United Bank v. Buckingham
Being appointed an agent under a financial power of attorney, or as a Court-appointed guardian, comes with a significant delegation of authority. However, it is important to know that such delegation of power is not without limits. For example, an agent can only exercise powers specifically granted under the power of attorney document. And, in the case of a guardianship, the guardian is obligated to periodically account for the Court of their efforts on behalf of the ward. And, of course, a fiduciary under either scenario cannot abuse their power or use their power unlawfully.