Firm News

Three putative class representatives filed suit in Montgomery County Circuit Court (MD) alleging the MVA has been overcharging drivers for suspended license hearings.  Specifically, the plaintiffs brought suit on behalf of themselves and all others who have been subject to paying an administrative hearing fee of $150 when the fee should have only been $15. The Code of Maryland Regulations states that the Office of Administrative Hearing (OAH), the body of government responsible for the suspended license hearings, shall “consider a request for a hearing from a party valid only when accompanied by a payment of a $15 filing fee.” But according to the Article of Rights given to a person accused of a DUI at the time of his/her arrest by the arresting officer, the request for a hearing will be invalid “if submitted without the required $150 filing fee (or applicable waiver).”

In an interview with The Montgomery Sentinel, David Nitkin, director of communications and policy advisor for the Office of the Maryland Attorney General, stated that “Based upon applicable statutes and a determination by the Chief Administrative Law Judge of the Office of Administrative Hearings, the state contends that the $150 fee is authorized.”