How to Respond to a Small Claims Lawsuit in Maryland

Someone just handed you court papers. A certified letter arrived, or a process server showed up at your door. The complaint says you owe someone money, and the courthouse listed is a Maryland District Court. Your first question is probably whether you can ignore it. The short answer: you cannot, not without consequences.

Here is what to do, in order, starting right now.

Verify the Papers Are Real

Before anything else, confirm the lawsuit is legitimate. Maryland process scams do exist. Check the case number printed on your summons against the Maryland Judiciary Case Search database. If the case number appears with your name, it is real.

There may be a brief delay between service and the case showing up online. If you do not see it immediately, call the clerk's office at the courthouse listed on your summons to confirm.

Your packet should include the Writ of Summons, a Complaint filed on Form DC-CV-001, and a detachable Notice of Intention to Defend at the bottom of the summons.

Understand the 15-Day Deadline

Maryland Rule 3-307 gives you 15 calendar days from the date you were served to file a Notice of Intention to Defend (NOID). Count from the day after service; if service was by mail, add three days when Maryland Rule 1-203(c) applies. This is not the same as your trial date — the trial is typically scheduled 60 to 90 days out. The response deadline is the one that matters right now.

If you were served outside Maryland, the deadline is 60 days. It is also 60 days if Maryland law requires you to have a resident agent and service is made on that agent through SDAT, the Insurance Commissioner, or another state agency authorized by statute to accept process. A federal defendant served under Rule 3-124(m) or (n) also has 60 days.

If you miss this deadline and do not appear at trial, the court may enter an ex parte judgment on affidavit if the complaint included a demand for judgment on affidavit, the required affidavit and supporting documentation are legally sufficient, and the plaintiff has provided the required military-service information. Filing the NOID costs nothing and takes five minutes.

Your Four Options

Once you have the papers in hand, you are choosing between four paths:

Dispute the claim. File the Notice of Intention to Defend within 15 days, attend the hearing, and present your side. This is the right choice when you believe the plaintiff is wrong about the facts or the amount.

Admit and pay. If you owe the money and want to resolve it, pay the plaintiff directly and have them file a Notice of Dismissal (Form DC-CV-021) with the court. Do not assume paying makes the case disappear — the plaintiff must formally dismiss it.

Settle out of court. Contact the plaintiff (or their attorney) and negotiate a resolution. If you reach an agreement, put it in writing and file a stipulation of dismissal signed by all parties under Rule 3-506 before the trial date.

Do nothing. The court may enter an ex parte judgment on affidavit if the plaintiff's proof is sufficient. Post-judgment interest is 10% per year, or 6% for residential rent judgments, and the judgment is enforceable for 12 years (renewable for another 12). This is rarely the right choice.

File the Notice of Intention to Defend

The NOID form is the detachable section at the bottom of your Writ of Summons. Fill in your name, sign it, date it, and write a brief reason you are contesting the claim — one sentence is enough ("I dispute the amount owed" or "The work described was never agreed to").

You can file the NOID three ways:

• In person at the District Court clerk's office listed on your summons. Bring a copy for them to stamp as proof of filing.
• By mail to the same clerk's office. What matters is the date the clerk receives it, not your mailing date.
• Through MDEC (Maryland Electronic Courts), though pro se defendants are not required to e-file.

There is no fee to file a NOID.

What Happens After You File

The court notifies the plaintiff that you intend to defend, and the trial date on the summons may change. Watch for an updated court notice. Use the time before trial to organize your evidence — contracts, receipts, photos, text messages — into a binder with copies for the judge and the other side.

If you believe the plaintiff actually owes you money from the same dispute, you can file a counterclaim on Form DC-CV-001 within 10 days after your applicable NOID deadline (about 25 days after service for an in-state defendant, plus any applicable mail extension). The counterclaim filing fee is $18.

Maryland District Court also offers free mediation on the day of trial. You and the plaintiff meet with a neutral mediator to see if you can settle before the judge hears the case.

Our Maryland Small Claims Response Guide walks through every step from service through the hearing, with a deadline calculator and evidence organizer worksheets included.

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