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Maryland State Courts

Courts – State Courts – Maryland

Highest Court

Court of Appeals
The Court of Appeals consists of 7 judges. It has jurisdiction over (1) Mandatory jurisdiction in capital, disciplinary, and certified questions from federal courts. (2) Discretionary jurisdiction in civil, noncapital criminal, administrative agency, and juvenile, interlocutory decision cases.

Intermediate Courts

Court of Special Appeals
The Court of Special Appeals consists of 13 judges. It has jurisdiction over (1)Mandatory jurisdiction in civil, noncapital criminal, administrative agency, juvenile, and interlocutory decision cases. (2) Discretionary jurisdiction in probation violations, guilty pleas, and victim rights.

General Courts

Circuit Court
The Circuit Court consist of 157 judges.  It has jurisdiction over (1) Tort, contract, real property rights ($2,500/no maximum), estate, miscellaneous civil. Domestic relations, mental health, civl appeals jurisdiction. (2) Felonies, misdemeanor (3 years & $0-$2,500). (3) Exclusive criminal appeals jurisdiction. (4) Appeals of administrative agency decisions.
No jury trials are overseen by this court.

Limited Courts

District Court
The District Court consists of 111 judges.  It has jurisdiction over (1) Tort, civil ($2,500-36,000), real property rights, domestic violence, exclusive small claims jurisdiction ($2,500). (2) Selected moving traffic, ordinance violation, and miscellaneous traffic jurisdiction.
No jury trials are overseen by this court.

Orphans’ Court
The Orphans’ Court consists of 66 judges.  It has jurisdiction over (1) Estate, except where such cases are handled by Circuit Court in Montgomery and Harford counties.
No jury trials are overseen by this court.

Additional Information

Highest court of State
The Maryland Court of Appeals is the highest court in the state of Maryland.
(Maryland Code § 1-301)

Sessions; panels; hearings in banc involving the Court of Special Appeals
The Maryland Court of Special Appeals shall hold its sessions in the City of Annapolis, except when  the Chief Judge of the Court of Special Appeals, in conjunction with the respective deans of the law schools of the following universities, designated that it should be held at the University of Maryland and the University of Baltimore. A Court of Special Appeals shall not continue less than an 10 months a year. The panel of the Court of Special appeals shall be heard by a least three judges. The panels shall be directed by the Chief Judge. A quorum of a panel consist of one less than the number of judges designated to sit on the panel.  An agreement of the majority of the panel is needed to decide a case.  Hearings in banc.- A hearing or rehearing before the court in banc may be ordered in any case by a majority of the incumbent judges of the court. Six judges of the court constitute a quorum of the court in banc. The concurrence of a majority of the incumbent judges of the entire court is necessary for decision of a case heard or reheard by the court in banc. (Maryland Code § 1-403)

Administrative judges; functional divisions.
The Chief Judge of the District Court (subject to approval of the Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals) shall designate a District Court Judge that will act as the Administrative Judge for the assigned district.  Any District Court may be divided into a civil, criminal, traffic, or other functional division as is required to facilitate the work of the District Court.  (Maryland Code § 1-607)

Executions and attachments.
The sheriff of an assigned county may seize only the property within his county with a writ of execution or attachment.  (Maryland Code § 2-302)

Failure to bring person into court.
Any officer who fails or refuses to bring a detained person into court under the commandment of a writ of habeas corpus shall forfeit $500 to the detained person. Furthermore, the court may order judgment against the sheriff in the amount of the amercement or amount of the penalty or judgment and cost  entered against the person who failed to appear. (Maryland Code § 2-305)

Books and records
The sheriff is to keep an official record of fees and charges collected and those to be collected.  The official record shall remain in the sheriff’s office after the sheriff’s term and may be audited by  the county government.  (Maryland Code  2-307).

Admissibility of duplicate in evidence.
The definitions of the words and phrases used in the statutes referring to the admissions of duplicates as evidence. (Maryland Code 10-103)


Inside Maryland State Courts