Inside District Court
interest, costs, and attorney's fees), the appeal will then be heard de novo in Circuit Court as a completely new trial.12 Regardless of the amount in controversy, the requesting party must file its appeal within thirty (30) days of the date that the
judgment is entered by the District Court.13 Stay of Enforcement Pending an Appeal
A stay of enforcement of a District Court Judgment pending an appeal to Circuit Court is governed by the appellate review rules, Maryland Rules 8-422, 8-423 and 8-424. Accordingly, to stay enforcement of a District Court Judgment that is being appealed, the judgment debtor would need to file with the District Court a supersedeas bond or other security as per Maryland Rules 1-402 or 8-424. Forcing the filing of a bond or other security by pursuing collection of a judgment that is being appealed is one of the best ways of protecting the collectability of your Judgment.
Sheriff Sales Maryland Rules 3-641 through 3-644 outline the two-
step process for requesting and levying a writ of execution on a debtor’s interest in real or personal property to satisfy a District Court Judgment, a process more commonly known as a Sheriff Sale. “Step One” consists of filing a Request for Writ of Execution and the Sheriff levying the Writ of Execution on the debtor’s real or personal property. After the Writ of Execution has been posted on the property for 30 days, a judgment creditor can initiate “Step Two," which is where the Sheriff is formally directed to sell the property under levy. Sheriff Sales are rarely pursued due to the considerable expense of advertising, title searches, sheriff or auctioneer fees and bond fees. However, consideration should be given to at least initiating the first step of a Sheriff Sale. Te first step can be a highly effective way to motivate a debtor to pay a judgment while incurring minimal costs. Te average cost for “Step One” is $50.00 including service costs, while “Step Two” can cost more than $3,000. It should be noted that the costs associated with Sheriff Sales and the methods for conducting the sale vary on a county-by-county basis.
Know the Bankruptcy Rules Attorneys who do collections should always be familiar
with bankruptcy law and rules of procedure. While most attorneys are familiar with basic bankruptcy rules, such as the automatic stay on collections efforts during the pendency of a bankruptcy case and the rules for when a Proof of Claim should be filed, many attorneys are not aware of more complicated bankruptcy issues that frequently impact the practice of
12 MD Code, Courts and Judicial Proceedings, §12-401(f). 13 MD Code, Courts and Judicial Proceedings, §12-401(e).
a collections attorney. For example, payments made to a judgment creditor pursuant to a garnishment on the wages of a judgment debtor may be considered avoidable “preferential transfers” under 11 U.S.C. §547 if such payments are made within 90 days of a judgment debtor filing bankruptcy.
If
a collections attorney does not know the rules concerning avoidable preferential transfers, he or she may unwittingly violate bankruptcy court rules if such payments are collected and incorrectly disbursed to his or her client during the 90- day period before a judgment debtor files bankruptcy.
Quantum Meruit In cases where there is a legitimate dispute over the
enforceability or the existence of a contract, a plaintiff may still be able to bring an action to recover the value of work or services performed under the legal theory of Quantum Meruit. From the Latin phrase meaning “as much as he deserves,” Quantum Meruit allows a plaintiff to recover what he or she is owed from a debtor if it can be clearly proven to the court: (i) that the plaintiff, in good faith, performed valuable services for the debtor; (ii) that the debtor accepted plaintiff ’s services with the expectation of paying for the services; and (iii) that the value of the services was fair and reasonable.14 14 Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Semmes, 73 Md. 9, 20 A. 127 (1890); Prince George's County v.
Trial Reporter / Summer 2012 43
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