April 29, 2013

Traditionally, personal injury claims have generally consisted of a plaintiff seeking damages for expenses and “pain and suffering” relating to physical injuries sustained as a result of an accident. Emotional distress is an element of a plaintiff’s pain and suffering, but is not, in and of itself, a separate and distinct claim. There seems to [...]

September 18, 2012

On August 9, 2012, the Maryland Insurance Administration issued Bulletin 12-15, wherein it presented proposed regulations impacting insurers who apply percentage deductibles to hurricane or storm claims.  The regulations are designed to “define homeowners insurance; establish when an insurer can apply a percentage deductible; detail the information that must accompany the insurer’s filing of an [...]

February 07, 2013

As of January 1, 2013, the Civil Marriage Protection Act legalized same-sex marriage in the State of Maryland.  From the estate-planning perspective, the passage of this law clarified many points that had been problematic for same-sex couples including rights of inheritance where there is no will, spousal elective shares, and assessment of Maryland inheritance tax.  […]