Maryland's contributory negligence rule
Most states shrink an award when the injured person shares the blame. Maryland is stricter. In Coleman v. Soccer Association of Columbia, the state's highest court refused to drop contributory negligence and said any change belongs to the legislature.
Under that doctrine, a plaintiff whose own negligence helped cause the injury can be barred from recovery. Expect the owner's insurer to look hard at what you did in the seconds before the bite. Keep your account short, accurate and consistent from the first doctor visit on.
Is Maryland a strict liability state for dog bites?
Partly. Courts and Judicial Proceedings section 3-1901 says proof that the dog caused your injury creates a rebuttable presumption that the owner knew or should have known of its vicious or dangerous tendencies. In a jury trial, the judge may not rule the presumption rebutted before the verdict, so the jury decides.
A dog running at large faces a firmer rule. The owner is liable for the injury unless you were trespassing or committing a crime on the owner's property, committing a crime against someone or teasing, tormenting, abusing or provoking the dog.
Landlords and other people who are not the owner
The presumption applies only to owners. For anyone else, such as a landlord or a person watching the dog, subsection (b) keeps the common law of dog attacks as it stood on April 1, 2012. It also says the dog's breed or heritage plays no part.
So a claim against a non-owner gets no help from the presumption and turns on the older case law. If a rental property is involved, see our page on landlord liability for dog bites.
Maryland dog bite statute of limitations
You have three years. Section 5-101 requires a civil action at law to be filed within three years from the date it accrues.
A child's claim waits. Section 5-201 gives a minor three years after the disability is removed and the age of majority in Maryland is 18.
Claims against a county or city in Maryland
A bite by a police dog or a county shelter dog has a much earlier first step. Under section 5-304, written notice stating the time, place and cause of the injury must be given within 1 year. It goes in person or by certified mail, return receipt requested.
The right office depends on the place. In Baltimore City it is the City Solicitor and in Howard or Montgomery County it is the County Executive. There is some give. The rule does not apply if the local government already had actual or constructive notice of your injury within that year and a court can excuse a missed notice for good cause unless the defense was harmed. Still, a Maryland dog bite lawyer can send it correctly while you heal.
How to report a dog bite in Maryland
Report the bite to your local health department. The Maryland Department of Health, Rabies page sets out the next steps.
Before you sign with anyone, check that the attorney is licensed: use the Maryland Courts attorney search.
