Q: What are the possible damages I can pursue for an Illegal Eviction?
I was illegally evicted without an official court order by the Landlords entire family. I was pregnant, high risk and baby was born preterm as a result.
A: That does not sound like an illegal eviction. And a personal injury action is doubtful as apparently no damages resulted.
A:
It is very difficult to know what, if any, damages may be available without knowing exactly how the eviction was "illegal." A Landlord can lawfully ask a Tenant to leave if the lease is up, or if the tenant doesn't pay, or if a lease term is breached, etc., by giving written notice. What a Landlord cannot do in Maryland is physically change the locks or take out all the tenant's belongings and dump them on the yard without a court order.
The life impacts of stress caused by a move (such as possibly going into early labor) are not generally factored into a landlord/tenant matter. Instead the law looks more at the cut-and-dry: Was there a lease? Did either party break the lease? Did the Landlord follow MD law on giving notice, etc.?
If you have reason to believe that the Landlord broke specific Landlord/Tenant laws in Maryland, you may wish to sit down with a lawyer to discuss privately the facts and see what, if any, legal action may apply. For example you might reach out to an organization like Civil Justice at https://civiljusticeinc.org/faqs or the Maryland Volunteer Lawyer Service (MVLS) at https://mvlslaw.org/
While not legal advice I hope that this general information helps and that you and your baby are thriving.
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