Rule 3-722.Receivers
District Court · Last amended October 1, 2021 · Last verified July 13, 2026
Full Text of Rule 3-722
Amendment History
Added Dec. 16, 1999, effective Jan. 1, 2000; amended November 1, 2012, effective January 1, 2013; July 9, 2021, effective Oct. 1, 2021.
Committee Note & Source
Cross references. For the power of the District Court to appoint a receiver, see Code, Courts Article, §§ 4-401 (8) and 4-402 (b); Code, Real Property Article, § 14-120; and Baltimore City Building Code, 2011 Edition, § 121.
Cross references. Title 1, Chapter 400 (Bond).
Source. This Rule is new.
Plain-English Summary
This rule applies to a narrow but important kind of receivership: a receiver appointed to take charge of property so a local or state code can be enforced or a nuisance abated — the mechanism courts use to deal with dangerous, blighted, or code-violating property when the owner won't fix it. Rule 3-722 lays out how that receivership runs from start to finish. The court's order appointing the receiver has to spell out the receiver's powers (including any authority to spend money or place liens on the property to secure those expenses), any bond amount, and the terms of an eventual sale. A receiver can't hire an attorney, accountant, appraiser, auctioneer, or other professional without the court signing off first, and Title 14, Chapter 300 governs the actual sale of the property except where Rule 3-722 says otherwise.
The sale process itself is built around notice: once the receiver files the Report of Sale, the receiver must mail notice — first class and certified — to the mortgagor, the current record owner, and anyone holding a recorded subordinate interest in the property, including judgment holders, and must also post notice on the property itself. That notice stands in for the clerk's usual notice-and-publication process. Interested parties get 30 days after the later of mailing or posting to file exceptions to the sale, and the court ratifies the sale once that window closes and it's satisfied the sale was conducted and properly. After ratification and payment, the receiver conveys the property, records the ratification order in the local land records, and eventually files an accounting before distributing proceeds and asking the court to terminate the receivership. The rule also covers how a receiver can be removed for good cause or allowed to resign, in both cases with notice to everyone with an interest in the property.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of receivership does Rule 3-722 cover?
It applies specifically to a receiver appointed to take charge of property to enforce a local or state code or to abate a nuisance — not to receiverships generally. This is the tool courts use when a property is unsafe, blighted, or in violation of code and needs someone other than the owner managing it, and potentially selling it.
Does a receiver need court approval to hire a lawyer or contractor?
Yes. Rule 3-722(e) requires prior court approval before a receiver employs an attorney, accountant, appraiser, auctioneer, or any other professional. The receiver can't retain outside help on the property's behalf without the court signing off first.
How does the sale of a receivership property get finalized?
After the sale, the receiver mails and posts notice to interested parties, who then have 30 days from whichever of those happened later to file exceptions. If no exceptions are filed, or exceptions are filed but overruled, the court ratifies the sale once it's satisfied the sale was and properly conducted. The receiver then conveys the property and records the ratification order in the land records.
Who has to be notified before a receivership sale becomes final?
Rule 3-722(f)(1) requires the receiver to mail notice to the mortgagor, the present record owner of the property, and the holder of any recorded subordinate mortgage, deed of trust, or other recorded or filed subordinate interest, including a judgment. The same list of people gets notice again later when the receiver files an accounting.
Can a receiver be removed or allowed to resign?
Yes. Under Rule 3-722(k), anyone with an interest in the property, or the court on its own, can petition to remove a receiver for good cause, and the receiver or another interested person can request a hearing within 10 days of service of that petition. A receiver can also petition to resign, but the appointment doesn't end until the court approves the resignation, and the receiver has to file a report and accounting covering the whole period of the appointment first.