(Annotated Code of Maryland, Real Property Article, Section 8-402.1)
According to Maryland law, a breach of lease occurs when a tenant commits one or more "substantial" lease violation(s). In response, a landlord may file a Complaint for Repossession of Rental Property against Tenant in Breach of Lease and seek an eviction order from the court based on the lease violations. Breach of Lease cases typically arise from incidents involving controlled dangerous substances, destruction of property, serious noise violations, unauthorized residents, etc.
The litigation process involves serving the tenant with thirty (30) days' notice to vacate the leased premises. Should the tenant fail to vacate the premises at the end of the notice period, a Complaint for Repossession is filed in the District Court, and trial is held about three to four (3-4) weeks from the date the Complaint is filed.
In order to bring the matter to trial, the landlord must serve the tenant a notice to vacate, which is incorporated into and becomes the basis of the Complaint. At trial on the Complaint, the landlord must introduce evidence (witnesses, documents, pictures, etc.) which proves a substantial lease violation occurred and that an eviction is warranted.
If the court enters a Judgment of Possession in favor of the landlord as a result of the lease violation(s), the eviction process is the same as the process in rent cases except that the appeal period (and therefore the wait time to file the Warrant) is ten (10) days as opposed to one (1) week.
To learn more about breach of lease cases in Maryland, and for a free, no-obligation consultation with our landlord-tenant attorneys, please contact the Law Offices of Edward J. Maher, P.C. today.