Family Court – Baltimore City

Filing Requirements    Orders

Hearings
Scheduling     Settlement Conferences     Length of Wait Before Hearing 
          Emergency Hearings     Who Will Hear the Case    

Case Management In Circuit Court

Hearings
Scheduling
Hearings are generally scheduled automatically, but not 100% of the time.

Settlement Conferences
The court holds settlement conferences in cases with pro-se litigants and when parties are represented by an attorney.

Length of Time to Get a Hearing
A minimum of 3-4 months. The waiting time is less if you’re going before a Master as opposed to a judge.

Emergency Hearings – Pro Se Litigants
In order to request an emergency hearing, a litigant needs to have an underlying case already filed or must file a case concurrent with the request. There is a specific form to request an emergency hearing. 

"Reasonable" notice must be given to the opposing party, and the Master may construe this requirement strictly. Legal Aid suggests that the filing party call the opposing one to inform them that they filed the request.

Information from the court on emergency hearings is available through their website. 

Who Will Hear The Case
A special Master can hear emergency, custody, child support and divorce cases. Two other Masters hear all of the previous types of cases except for emergency. Masters who hear cases outside of the courthouse deal with a more limited range of issues, such as uncontested divorce.


Case Management Section of Baltimore Circuit Court
The court’s website provides a frequently asked questions section on scheduling and progress of cases.


Source: A joint project of the Women’s Law Center and MLAN, along with interviews conducted with Family Law Court Coordinators, court clerks and local advocates practicing in this county.  Updated by the Maryland State Law Library (MSLL).

Date of Last Review: 10/3/08 (PLL/M.A.J.)