And not just featured- on the front cover. Cynthia Lifson is featured on and in The Daily Record under the powerful words “Halting Harassment.” A long-time advocate against domestic violence, Lifson recently testified in support of legislation that significantly broadened the definition of stalking. This legislation received the overwhelming support of the General Assembly and was officially signed by the Governor on May 19. The new law will go into effect on October 1. While stalking has been a crime in Maryland for a number of years, the new law will prohibit a person from engaging in a malicious course of conduct in which the person intends to cause or knows or reasonably should have known, that the conduct would cause serious emotional distress in another. Until the passage of this new law, stalking was limited to a showing that the malicious course of conduct would place another in reasonable fear of: serious bodily injury; an assault in any degree; rape or sexual offense or attempted rape or sexual offense; false imprisonment; or death. The Bureau of Justice Statistics, an agency of the U.S. Department of Justice, identified and measured seven stalking behaviors that that would cause a reasonable person to feel serious emotional distress. These behaviors include: Making unwanted phone calls; Sending unsolicited or unwanted letters, e-mails, messages or texts; Following or spying on the victim; Showing up at places without a legitimate reason; Waiting at places for the victim; Leaving unwanted items, presents, or flowers; Posting information or spreading rumors about the victim on the internet, in a public place, or by word of mouth. While these...
Recently, Cynthia Lifson completed the informative professional development seminar titled Everything You Don’t Know About E-Discovery (But Wish You Did). Below is her certificate of...
Now that we are truly in the midst of the fall season, we can see that the initial tumult associated with back to school has somewhat subsided. As children settle into their academic year, most of us see the value of reasonable routines and predictability. Benefits derived from the re-organization of a family while adults, along with their children, are in the midst of separation and divorce appear to be counter-intuitive. Most people would agree that such a re-organization of the family unit is both painful and disappointing. Many fear that the impact on children is devastating. Why would anyone think that divorce is a good thing? I recently read an interesting article written by an adult whose parents divorced when she was a young girl. The author was careful to emphasize that her parents engaged in a cooperative divorce, but even under these circumstances, the transition in her family required great effort to achieve a new equilibrium. In commenting about how her parents’ divorce affected her, the author noted on several impacts on her that are rarely addressed in the public discussions about divorce. It gave me pause and I would like to share her reflections with you. She noted that the first most obvious benefit to her was the cessation of continual conflict in her home. When her parents separated, she experienced immediate relief from the constant tension in her home even though her parents tried very hard to refrain from arguing in front of her. As time passed, she also noticed that because her parents were separated, she could better relate to each of them as individuals. ...
In Maryland, October 1 is the date when most legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by the Governor goes into effect. In 2015, some major changes occurred in family law. For divorcing couples who do not have minor children and who can come to agreement about property and alimony issues, there is no need to separate and wait one year before filing for an absolute (final) divorce based on the ground of mutual consent. This development significantly eases the path for couples who seek an uncontested divorce because no one year waiting period will be required before a complaint for absolute divorce can be filed in court. Another law related to grounds for divorce will also become effective October 1. While it may not have as much of an impact as the new ground of mutual consent for an absolute divorce, it will now be possible to apply for a limited divorce based on separation of the parties. Previously, before filing a claim for a limited divorce based on a separation of the parties, the moving party was required to prove that the separation of the parties was the result of a voluntary agreement by both parties. In certain difficult situations where parties cannot reach an agreement about separation, this change in the law will allow one of the parties to move from the marital home and begin a court proceeding promptly. While it is usually desirable to resolve pending issues between unhappy members of a couple without beginning the procedure with a court filing, in certain situations, a court action is the first step...
In any lawsuit, including family law cases, it is common to engage in the process of discovery. In essence, discovery is intended to allow each party in the litigation process to collect information which is reasonably calculated to produce admissible evidence in advance of a court hearing or trial. Failure by a party to respond to discovery requests may result in serious sanctions by the court and may also result in an overall negative outcome for the party who does not comply with the rules of discovery. Discovery takes on a variety of forms and can be an exhausting and time consuming undertaking. Traditionally, the discovery process is “paper-rich” and may include the preparation of and answers to questions (referred to as interrogatories), the preparation of and response to requests for the production of documents, and depositions or the taking of testimony under oath of the parties or other witnesses. As our more and more of our means of communication take place electronically, discovery also encompasses the recovery of electronically stored information (ESI). Retrieving ESI can be a much more complicated procedure than merely copying documents and courts have been developing rules to govern this process. Certain difficulties emerge when collecting ESI. For example, electronic records have multiple facets, including metadata, which may be considered privileged information. Metadata, at its simplest definition, is electronically embedded details about a data file, such as the date it was created, its author, or its connection to other files or information. Connections to otherwise confidential documents could potentially make that metadata privileged and not subject to discovery. It can be a complicated process...
Award was received at the YLS annual charity event Competent, caring, and committed are the words attorney Cynthia Lifson lives by, both personally and professionally, as a local legal practitioner. For more than 20 years she has made meaningful contributions to the Maryland community, from representing victims of domestic violence before the Maryland General Assembly, to working in various charitable organizations including the Community Foundation of Howard County. Lifson’s dual commitment to charitable and professional achievement is why she has been named a 2015 Lawyer of the Year by the Young Lawyers Section (YLS) of the Maryland Bar Association. On Friday, March 20, 2015, Lifson was honored at YLS’s 24th Annual Charity Event at the Louisiana Restaurant in Baltimore. This year’s event raised funds to benefit Playworks Maryland, which focuses on increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play for children. “As I have learned throughout my career, it is absolutely critical for lawyers to study together, to socialize with one another, and to serve the community,” said Lifson of the honor. “All of these activities enhance our ability to help our clients and to help us to thrive in a stressful profession. This is the mission of the Young Lawyers Section, and I was so very proud to be a part of their celebration.” As the largest segment of the Maryland State Bar Association, the Young Lawyers Section provides members with education, social activities, networking opportunities, and opportunities to do community service in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Since opening the Law Offices of Cynthia M. Lifson in 1993 [with locations now in Columbia, Towson, Annapolis, and Owings Mills], Lifson has...
