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Recent Maryland Case Updates
The Supreme Court of Maryland provides a historical and legal overview of the law of burial grounds in the United States to determined that compliance with a state quiet title statute for such sale was not mandatory. The Court held that equitable considerations remain and identified five key common law principles affecting the sale of burial grounds.
The Appellate Court of Maryland determined that an assignee of the Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) was subject to the licensing requirements under Maryland's Credit Grantor Revolving Credit Provisions, Md. Code, Comm. Law § 12-901, et seq.
However, the Court rejected challenges to the enforceability of HELOC as having merged with a prior judgment on the debt, was barred by a statute of limitations, or that Assignee lacked standing because the HELOC was non-negotiable. According to the Court, a recorded assignment of the HELOC conclusively established ownership in the Assignee.
The Maryland federal district court held that vague "recoverable corporate advances" on mortgage statements may violate the FDCPA. The Court noted that while "debt collectors may not have an affirmative, specific legal duty to itemize, they are nevertheless obligated to avoid practices that would mislead an unsophisticated consumer, which may necessitate proper and sufficient itemization."
The Appellate Court of Maryland determined that a foreclosure of a reverse mortgage did not extinguish the Lender’s right to insurance proceeds for a casualty loss that had occurred presale, up to the amount of the remaining unpaid balance. In doing so, the Court applied the “loss before foreclosure rule” to the reverse mortgage, notwithstanding the reverse mortgage’s prohibitions against collection of a deficiency judgment.