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(a) The Commission may:
(1) compel the attendance at a hearing of witnesses and parties, administer oaths, take the testimony of any person under oath and, in connection with any dispute, require the production of any relevant evidence; and
(2) issue summonses to compel the attendance of witnesses and parties and the production of documents, records and other evidence in any matter to which this Article applies.
(b) If any person does not comply with any summons issued under this Article to compel the attendance of persons or the production of documents, records or other evidence in any matter to which this Article applies, the County Attorney, on behalf of the Commission, may enforce the summons in a court with jurisdiction. Failure to comply with a Commission summons is also a class A violation.
(c) Any court with jurisdiction may, on request of the Commission, in accordance with state law and the Maryland Rules of Procedure:
(1) require compliance with a summons;
(2) require the attendance of a named person before the Commission at a specified time and place;
(3) require the production of records, documents, or other evidence;
(4) require the transfer of custody of records, documents, or other evidence to the court; or
(5) prohibit the destruction of any records, documents, or other evidence until a lawful investigation by the Commission is ended.
(d) A court may punish any disobedience of any order entered under this Section as a contempt of court. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1.)
(a) The Director may investigate facts and assemble documents relevant to a dispute filed with the Commission, and may summarize the issues in the dispute. The Director may notify a party if, in the Director’s opinion, a dispute was not properly filed with the Commission, and may inform each party of the possible sanctions under Section 10B-13(d).
(b) If the Director, after reviewing a dispute, finds that, assuming all facts alleged by the party that filed the dispute are true, there are no reasonable grounds to conclude that a violation of applicable law or any association document has occurred, the Director must so inform the Commission. The Commission must dismiss a dispute if it finds that there are no reasonable grounds to conclude that a violation of applicable law or any association document has occurred, or it may order the Director to investigate further. The Commission may reconsider the dismissal of a dispute under this subsection if any party, in a motion to reconsider filed within 30 days after the dispute is dismissed, shows that:
(1) the Commission erroneously interpreted or applied applicable law or an association document; or
(2) material issues of fact that are necessary to a fair resolution of the dispute remain unresolved.
(c) If the Director, after reviewing a dispute and any investigation, finds reasonable grounds to conclude that a violation of applicable law or an association document has occurred, the Director must attempt to resolve the matter through informal negotiation including, in the Director's discretion, mediation. Each party named in the dispute or its representative must attend any mediation conference scheduled by the Director under this Section unless excused by the Director. If the party that files the dispute refuses or fails to participate in the mediation, the Director must dismiss the dispute. If the party that is the subject of the dispute refuses or fails to participate in the mediation, the Director must refer the dispute to the Commission for resolution. The party that is the subject of the dispute may not appear at the hearing, and the hearing panel may award relief to any party that the facts on the record warrant.
(d) Unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in writing, a mediation conference is informal and nothing said or done during a mediation conference is admissible in any subsequent hearing under this article.
(e) The Commission must promptly schedule a hearing under Section 10B-13 if either: (1) mediation has not occurred within 90 days after the Director found reasonable grounds to believe a violation occurred; or (2) the Director decides at any time that mediation would be fruitless. The Director may extend the mediation deadline by mutual consent of the parties.
(f) If a dispute is resolved by mediation, the terms of mediation agreed to by the parties must be reduced to writing and incorporated into a consent agreement to be signed by the parties. The agreement must be for mediation purposes only and is not an admission by any party that a violation of applicable law or an association document has occurred.
(g) In addition to any other penalty allowed by law, failure to adhere to any provision of a consent agreement is a class A violation. Any failure by the Director to enforce any provision of a consent agreement does not waive any private right of action against the violating party. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2023 L.M.C., ch. 7, §1.)
Editor’s note—2016 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 2, states: Sections 10B-11(c), (d), and (e), as amended by this Act, which require attempted informal resolution of disputes, including mediation, apply to all disputes filed with the Commission after this Act takes effect as provided in Charter Section 112.
2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, §§ 2 and 3, state:
Sec. 2. Regulations. A regulation which implements a function transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection by this Act continues in effect until otherwise amended or repealed, but any reference to any predecessor department or office must be treated as referring to the Office of Consumer Protection.
Sec. 3. Transition. This act does not invalidate or affect any action taken by the Department of Housing and Community Affairs before this Act took effect. Any responsibility or right granted by law, regulation, contract, or other document, and which is associated with a function transferred by this Act from the Department of Housing and Community Affairs, is transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection.
(a) If a hearing is scheduled, the Chair of the Commission must convene a 3-member panel to hear the dispute.
(b) The Chair must choose two members of the panel from the voting members of the Commission. The persons selected must represent the two different membership groups of the Commission. The Chair of the Commission must designate the third member from a list of volunteer arbitrators trained or experienced in common ownership community issues maintained by the Commission. The third member must Chair the panel. If a suitable arbitrator is not available, the Chair of the Commission must designate the third panelist from among the voting members of the Commission, and must designate the Chair of the panel.
(c) Each panelist must not have any interest in the dispute to be heard.
(d) Each volunteer arbitrator must not represent any parties in disputes before other hearing panels convened under this Chapter.
(e) If the Commission Chair decides that a hearing should be held by a hearing examiner instead of a hearing panel, the Chair, with the approval of the Commission, may designate the Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings to conduct the hearing. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1; 2010 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2023 L.M.C., ch. 7, §1.)
(1) the dispute is essentially identical to another dispute between the same parties on which a hearing has already been held under this Section; or
(2) the dispute is clearly not within the jurisdiction of the Commission.
(b) The Administrative Procedures Act (Article I of Chapter 2A) applies to a hearing held under this Section. However, the parties need not be given more than 15 days’ notice before the hearing is held, if the Commission finds that an expedited hearing is necessary. At any hearing, a party or a witness may be advised by counsel.
(c) If any party, after proper notice, does not appear at the scheduled hearing, the hearing panel may order any relief to another party that the facts on record warrant.
(d) The hearing panel may award costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, to any party if the other party:
(1) filed or maintained a frivolous dispute, or filed or maintained a dispute in bad faith;
(2) refused to participate in mediation of a dispute, unreasonably withdrew from mediation; or
(3) substantially delayed or hindered the dispute resolution process without good cause.
The hearing panel may also require the losing party in a dispute to pay all or part of the filing fee.
(e) The hearing panel must apply State and County laws and all relevant caselaw to the facts of the dispute, and may order the payment of damages and any other relief that the law and the facts warrant. The decision of the hearing panel is binding on the parties, subject to judicial review under Section 2A-11.
(f) If the hearing has been held under Section 10B-12(d) by the Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings, the hearing examiner must forward a recommended decision and order to a Commission panel. The Commission panel may adopt, reverse, modify, or remand the recommended decision before issuing its final order as provided in this Section.
(g) An appeal of a decision under this Section must be consolidated with any case filed under Section 10B-9(f) that arises out of the same facts.
(h) The court hearing an appeal must sustain the decision of the hearing panel unless the decision is:
(1) inconsistent with applicable law;
(2) not supported by substantial evidence on the record; or
(3) arbitrary and capricious, considering all facts before the hearing panel.
(i) The Commission, acting through the Department and the County Attorney, may enforce a decision of the hearing panel by taking any appropriate legal action.
(j) In addition to any other penalty allowed by law, any person who does not comply with a final Commission order issued under this Chapter has committed a class A civil violation. Each day that a person does not comply with a Commission order is a separate offense. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1; 2013 L.M.C., ch. 29
, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2023 L.M.C., ch. 7, §1.)
Editor’s note—2013 L.M.C., ch. 29, § 2, states, in part: The Amendments to Section 10B-13 contained in Section 1 of this Act apply to any dispute filed with the Commission after the date this Act takes effect.
2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, §§ 2 and 3, state:
Sec. 2. Regulations. A regulation which implements a function transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection by this Act continues in effect until otherwise amended or repealed, but any reference to any predecessor department or office must be treated as referring to the Office of Consumer Protection.
Sec. 3. Transition. This act does not invalidate or affect any action taken by the Department of Housing and Community Affairs before this Act took effect. Any responsibility or right granted by law, regulation, contract, or other document, and which is associated with a function transferred by this Act from the Department of Housing and Community Affairs, is transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection.
(a) Settlement of a dispute by mediation agreed to by the parties is binding, has the force and effect of a contract, and may be enforced accordingly.
(b) The Director may inform any party who has settled a dispute by mediation, or any party who prevails in a hearing held under Section 10B-13, about how the agreement or decision can be enforced. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1.)
Editor’s note—2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, §§ 2 and 3, state:
Sec. 2. Regulations. A regulation which implements a function transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection by this Act continues in effect until otherwise amended or repealed, but any reference to any predecessor department or office must be treated as referring to the Office of Consumer Protection.
Sec. 3. Transition. This act does not invalidate or affect any action taken by the Department of Housing and Community Affairs before this Act took effect. Any responsibility or right granted by law, regulation, contract, or other document, and which is associated with a function transferred by this Act from the Department of Housing and Community Affairs, is transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection.
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