The state-level rules every owner and walker in Maryland should know. Local leash lengths, licensing and off-leash rules are set by each city — find those on the city pages below.
Maryland puts a rebuttable-presumption strict liability on owners (true strict liability if the dog is at large), judges walkers under negligence, and — like Virginia — bars a victim even 1% at fault.
Maryland (Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 3-1901, effective April 8, 2014) treats owners and non-owners differently. For an owner (subsection a), a dog causing injury creates a rebuttable presumption the owner knew or should have known the dog was dangerous — effectively strict liability unless the owner proves the dog had no dangerous tendencies and they could not have known; it covers non-bite injuries. For a dog running at large (subsection c), there is true strict liability with no presumption to rebut (narrow trespass, crime, or provocation exceptions). A non-owner, including a dog-walker or sitter (subsection b), is governed by common-law negligence — liable if they failed to use reasonable care.
The walker-critical case is Latz v. Parr (2021): a dog walker who used too long a leash while taking a dog through a crowd could be liable in negligence if someone trips or is injured, because a reasonable person would have used a shorter leash. A Maryland walker's exposure is negligence-based and very concrete — leash length and crowd control decide it.
⚠️ Maryland is a contributory-negligence state (one of only about four, plus DC) — a victim 1% at fault recovers nothing, which helps a defendant but is brutal if you are the one hurt. There is no statewide leash law — rules are local, and a violation supports negligence per se. Maryland has been breed-neutral since 2014. The personal-injury limit is three years.
This is general information about Maryland law, not legal advice. Confirm current rules with the official state and municipal sources.