Maryland Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Maryland, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Under Maryland's firearms law, does a common law assault or battery conviction count as a 'crime of violence' that bars someone from possessing a regulated firearm, and does that same 'crime of violence' definition sweep in every crime punishable by more than a year in prison?
Common law assault or battery does count, but the broader category is narrower than it might sound. The opinion concluded a conviction for common law assault or battery falls within the firearms law's…
Does Maryland's law requiring people to self-identify their own race on state forms apply to police arrest and booking forms?
The Attorney General concluded that Maryland's 1998 law requiring self-identification of race and allowing multiple racial categories applies generally to state forms, including those used by the Depa…
Can businesses use the Maryland flag in a state promotional logo without violating the flag desecration law?
The Attorney General concluded in 1990 that the state's 'Maryland With Pride' promotional logo, which uses a stylized version of the Maryland flag, does not violate the law against commercial misuse o…
Could the Maryland Stadium Authority use lottery-funded 'pay-go' money to buy the Camden Yards land, or only to build on land it already owned?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Maryland Stadium Authority could use Maryland Stadium Facilities Fund money to help pay for acquiring the Camden Yards property, not j…
Did the 1988 agreement between the Maryland Stadium Authority and the Baltimore Orioles count as the 'long-term lease' state law required before issuing stadium bonds?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Memorandum of Agreement between the Maryland Stadium Authority and the Baltimore Orioles was a binding 'long-term lease' under state l…
Does Maryland's Domestic Violence Act still protect a victim if the abuser has since moved out of the house?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a spouse, parent, stepparent, child, stepchild, or blood relative who abused another such relative while living together qualified as a 'h…
How much discretion did Maryland's Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission have to interpret its own local program criteria?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission had no discretion to vary from criteria written in mandatory terms like "shall" or "may not," …
If I pay off my credit card balance within the grace period, can the issuer still charge me a finance charge for the previous billing period?
Yes, according to this 1987 opinion. The Attorney General concluded Maryland's open-end credit statute lets a credit grantor assess a finance charge on a balance carried over from an earlier billing p…
Does Maryland's 15-day limit on domestic violence protective orders apply to custody or counseling relief too?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded Maryland's durational limit on domestic violence protective orders, 15 days for an order to vacate the family home, 25 days if the alleged abuser w…
Did Maryland's Lotto game revenue go only to counties, or also to the cities and towns within those counties?
In this 1984 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General concluded that Lotto lottery revenue had to be distributed only to Maryland's 23 counties and Baltimore City, not to the state's roughly 166 incorpo…
Did Maryland's 1982 law letting charities raffle off real estate override the usual county permit and licensing rules for raffles?
In this 1982 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General approved House Bill 1885, which let bona fide charitable organizations raffle off real property, but warned the General Assembly that the bill's bro…
Was it legal for Maryland veterinarians to euthanize dogs and cats with T-61 solution, or did that count as a banned 'curariform drug'?
In this 1982 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General concluded that T-61 Euthanasia Solution was not a prohibited 'curariform drug' under Article 27, §59A, even though one of its three components has a…
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Attorney general opinions in Maryland are written by the Maryland Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.