Maryland Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera Friday announced that, beginning Aug. 9, masks would be required for all, regardless of vaccination status, in courthouse and judicial branch facilities in any Maryland county or Baltimore city where COVID-19 community transmission rating ...

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Using technology to conduct judicial business remotely has grown in popularity in recent years, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made the practice  almost a necessity for Maryland courts, as they take steps to allow cases and hearings to be conducted ...

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State and federal courts in Maryland are further reducing activities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new and revised administrative orders issued Monday night. Maryland state courts, which Court of Appeals Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera previously closed ...

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Maryland courts will suspend all non-essential judicial activities effective immediately and suspend all jury trials beginning Monday in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera issued an order Thursday evening suspending out-of-state and out-of-country travel, requiring the minimization ...

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The Maryland Judiciary is testing a system that texts court date notifications to defendants with the hope that the reminders will increase appearance rates. The program launched Monday and allows defendants in district court who are screened for public defender representation for criminal ...

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The following is an excerpt of a conversation with Court of Appeals Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera from “Appellate Practice for the Maryland Lawyer: State and Federal, Fifth Edition,” edited by Paul Mark Sandler, Andrew D. Levy and Steven M. ...

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ANNAPOLIS – Maryland’s top jurist pressed senators Wednesday to approve what would be the first judicial pay raise in three years, saying a salary increase is necessary to attract and retain the best legal talent for the bench. “There is ...

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A Baltimore lawyer’s lawsuit against Court of Appeals Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera challenging the judicial appointment process has been dismissed. Rickey Nelson Jones, a Baltimore attorney who was not recommended to fill vacancies on the Anne Arundel Circuit Court ...

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The Maryland Judiciary is expanding services in Baltimore to help residents resolve civil legal matters for free.

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Maryland judges have significant latitude in how to conduct voir dire, but one method recently received a seal of approval from state’s top court. Writing for a unanimous Court of Appeals last month, Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera included “a ...

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