# Maryland — Landlord retaliation presumption period by US state

For Maryland, presumption period is 6 months; what the presumption does is A tenant may raise a retaliatory action of a landlord: (i) In defense to an action for possession; or (ii) As an affirmative claim for damages resulting from a retaliatory action of a landlord occurring during a tenancy; example of a protected activity is Because the tenant has participated in any tenants’ organization; statute is Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1, recorded from its source on 2026-09-02.

- **State:** Maryland _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Presumption period:** 6 months _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **What the presumption does:** A tenant may raise a retaliatory action of a landlord: (i) In defense to an action for possession; or (ii) As an affirmative claim for damages resulting from a retaliatory action of a landlord occurring during a tenancy. _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_
- **Example of a protected activity:** Because the tenant has participated in any tenants’ organization _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_
- **Statute:** Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1 _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_

## What the source says

> (e) An action by a landlord may not be deemed to be retaliatory for purposes of this section if the alleged retaliatory action occurs more than 6 months after a tenant’s action that is protected under subsection (a)(2) of this section.

## Where each value comes from

This source states these in separate places, so each value is shown with the passage that states it.

### What the presumption does

> (2) A tenant may raise a retaliatory action of a landlord: (i) In defense to an action for possession; or (ii) As an affirmative claim for damages resulting from a retaliatory action of a landlord occurring during a tenancy.

### Example of a protected activity

> (iii) Because the tenant has participated in any tenants’ organization; or

## Source

- https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-208.1

Last verified: 2026-09-02. Review by: 2027-09-02.
Part of [Landlord retaliation presumption period by US state](https://referencesource.org/landlord-retaliation-presumption-period-by-state/).