It has been a top legislative priority for businesses, but blizzard of lawsuits have failed to materialize
By: Johanna Alonso
Daily Record business reporter
April 6, 2021
With the Maryland General Assembly session coming to an end, a top priority for the state’s business community — legislation to protect businesses from lawsuits claiming that a customer had caught the virus at those businesses — has failed to move past initial hearings in either chamber.
Business leaders and advocates had fiercely pushed for the legislation, sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Christopher West, R-Baltimore County, and in the House by Del. Dalya Attar, D-Baltimore. They were worried that businesses open during the pandemic could be hit with an influx of lawsuits mirroring so-called “frivolous” Americans with Disabilities Act suits, which reportedly seek out businesses that are not complying with ADA standards in order to sue them and make money in a settlement.