§ 12-707. Civil remedies
West's Annotated Code of MarylandCommercial Law
MD Code, Commercial Law, § 12-707
§ 12-707. Civil remedies
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of § 12-703 of this subtitle, any creditor who violates any provisions of this subtitle is liable to the applicant in an amount equal to the sum of any actual damages sustained by the applicant acting either in an individual capacity or as a representative of a class.
(b) Any creditor who fails to comply with any requirement imposed under this subtitle shall be liable to the aggrieved applicant for punitive damages in an amount not greater than $10,000, as determined by the court, in addition to any actual damages provided in subsection (a) of this section. In pursuing the recovery allowed under this subsection, the applicant may proceed only in an individual capacity and not as a representative of a class.
(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, any creditor who fails to comply with any requirement imposed under this subtitle may be liable for punitive damages in the case of a class action in such amount as the court may allow, except that as to each member of the class no minimum recovery shall be applicable, and the total recovery in such action shall not exceed the lesser of $100,000 or 1 percent of the net worth of the creditor. In determining the amount of award in any class action, the court shall consider, among other relevant factors, the amount of any actual damages awarded, the frequency and persistence of failures of compliance by the creditor, the resources of the creditor, the number of persons adversely affected, and the extent to which the creditor's failure of compliance was intentional.
(f) A creditor does not violate this subtitle if the creditor shows by a preponderance of evidence in any administrative or judicial proceeding that the violation was not willful or resulted from a bona fide error notwithstanding the maintenance of procedures reasonably adapted to avoid any such error.
Credits
Added by Acts 1975, c. 753, § 1, eff. July 1, 1975. Amended by Acts 1976, c. 92; Acts 1976, c. 723; Acts 1977, c. 534; Acts 1989, c. 648; Acts 2013, c. 43, § 5.
MD Code, Commercial Law, § 12-707, MD COML § 12-707
Current through legislation effective through May 9, 2024, from the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
End of Document |