Is Maryland a common law State?

Question

curious:)

Answer 1

That depends on your reason for inquiring. Maryland does not allow its citizens to become common law Husband and Wife; however, someone obtaining such status in another jurisdiction is recongnized as Husband and Wife by the State of Maryland.

With respect to out general laws, common law simply means Judge-made law, as opposed to law promulgated by the legislature. We inherited our common law from England. To my knowledge, the only U.S. State which has not done so is Louisiana, which has its laws based on the Napoleonic Code.

Thus, common law is that law by which Judges "fil in the gaps" left by the legislature. To that end, then Maryland law is based on the common law, so your answer is probably YES>

Answer 2

For marriage? No, but it recognizes common law marriage from other states:

http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/body/bowel.html

Only thirteen states recognize common law marriages:

Alabama
Colorado
District of Columbia
Iowa
Kansas
Montana
New Hampshire
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Texas
Utah


Premarital and Cohabitation Agreements
Couples who are considering marriage or living together may benefit from talking to an experienced family law attorney about the advantages of a premarital (also called prenuptial or antenuptial) or cohabitation agreement. Although not very romantic, premarital agreements are an effective tool for defining the legal relationships between two people, particularly as it relates to property. Generally, the intent of the agreement is to create a framework for handling money and property issues during the marriage or relationship and a roadmap for property division should the relationship eventually terminate.

Each state has its own laws about what can be included in a premarital agreement. Most states will not uphold agreements about child support and will not uphold an agreement that was created fraudulently or unfairly. Eighteen states have adopted the Uniform Pre-Marital Agreement Act. The law dictates how premarital agreements should address property ownership, control, and management during the marriage and how property should be divided upon separation, divorce, or death. The states that have adopted the law are:

Arizona
Arkansas
California
Hawaii
Illinois
Iowa
Kansas
Maine
Montana
Nevada
New Jersey
North Carolina
North Dakota
Oregon
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Texas
Virginia


http://www.michaelsilvermanlaw.com/FamilyLawCenter.shtml?focus=topic&id=4

Answer 3

Yes, in the traditional sense. However it has no real significance today. Common law is based on the idea of stare decisis, or the following of previous court precedent. Civil law is "Code law", a compilation of statutes addressing all civil questions.

Louisiana is the prime example of what is commonly known as a "civil law" state. Today all states are somewhat common law, in that they look to previous precedent for guidance, and civil law in that they have various codes and statutes passed by their legislatures.