Title 5 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings article of the Maryland Statutes provides the basis for the length of the statute of limitations in Maryland civil cases. Subtitle 1 contains statutes related specifically to the limitations periods, and Subtitle 2 provides for exceptions to the limitations periods.
Limitations Period
Maryland Statute 5-102(a)(3) establishes the statute of limitations as 12 years after the date of entry of judgment in regard to enforcement of court judgments or within 12 years from the date of death of a judgment debtor or judgment creditor, whichever occurs first.
Exception
Maryland Statute 5-102(c) provides that the 12-year statute of limitations period does not apply to actions brought by the state of Maryland.
Tolling Periods
The statute of limitations period is extended in several situations. The limitations period is extended for claims by a minor or incompetent person (Section 5-201), for failure to file file a claim due to fraudulent representations made by an adverse party (Section 5-203) and for cases in which a party purposefully conceals himself by remaining outside the state of Maryland or by moving from county to avoid enforcement of the judgment (Section 5-205).
Foreign corporations or foreign limited partnerships cannot raise a statute of limitations defense for transactions or liabilities that occurred during the time that the entity was not qualified or registered to conduct business within the state of Maryland (Section 5-204).
References
Writer Bio
Roger Jewell has been a professional writer for over 20 years. He is a published author for both the Graduate Group and PublishAmerica, and is also a freelance writer. Jewell is a former attorney and private investigator. He earned his law degree from the University of La Verne School of Law.