(a) Scope of Rule. — This Rule applies to a claim for attorneys’ fees in an action in a circuit court that are allowed by a contract as an element of damages for breach of that contract. It does not apply to a claim for an award of attorneys’ fees to the prevailing party pursuant to a fee-shifting provision in a contract.
Rule 2-704.Attorneys’ fees allowed by contract as an element of damages
Circuit Court · Last amended July 1, 2021 · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 2-704 governs contract claims where attorneys’ fees are themselves an element of breach-of-contract damages, setting out who decides the award — judge or jury — and a streamlined evidence track for claims under 15% of the debt or $4,500.
Full Text of Rule 2-704
(b) Pleading. — A party who seeks attorneys’ fees from another party pursuant to this Rule shall include a claim for such fees in the party’s initial pleading or, if the grounds for such a claim arise after the initial pleading is filed, in an amended pleading filed promptly after the grounds for the claim arise.
(c) Scheduling conference and order. — If a claim for attorneys’ fees is made pursuant to this Rule, unless the court orders otherwise, the court shall conduct a scheduling conference in conformance with Rule 2-703 (c).
(d) Presentation of evidence. —
(1) Generally. — Unless the court orders otherwise, evidence in support of or in opposition to a claim for attorneys’ fees under this Rule shall be presented in the party’s case-in-chief and shall focus on the standards set forth in Rule 2-703 (f)(3) or subsection (e)(4) of this Rule, as applicable.
(2) Judgment by Confession. — If the party seeking attorneys’ fees has requested judgment by confession pursuant to Rule 2-611, evidence establishing entitlement to such fees and the reasonableness of the amount requested shall be included in the affidavit required by Rule 2-611 (a). If judgment by confession is not entered or is stricken and the action proceeds to trial, the evidence may be submitted at trial in accordance with this Rule.
(e) Determination of award. —
(1) If No Award Permitted. — If a verdict returned by a jury or findings made by the court do not permit an award of attorneys’ fees, the court shall include in its judgment on the underlying cause of action a denial of such an award.
(2) Trial by Court. — If the underlying cause of action is tried by the court, the court shall determine whether an award of attorneys’ fees is required or permitted. If the court finds that an award is required, it shall determine the amount. If the court finds that an award is permitted but not required, it shall determine whether an award should be made and, if so, the amount thereof. In determining the amount of an award, the court shall apply the standards set forth in Rule 2-703 (f)(3) or subsection (e)(4) of this Rule, as applicable.
(3) Trial by Jury. — If the underlying cause of action is tried by a jury, the jury, under appropriate instructions from the court, shall determine, as part of its verdict, whether an award of attorneys’ fees should be made to a party based on a breach of the contract by another party and the amount of such an award. If an award is made, on motion by any party affected by the award, the court, applying the standards set forth in Rule 2-703 (f)(3) or subsection (e)(4) of this Rule, as applicable, shall determine whether the amount of the award is reasonable and, if not, shall modify the award accordingly. This determination does not preclude any other relief the court may grant under Rules 2-532, 2-533, or 2- 535.
(4) Limited Evidence Permitted. — If the claim for an award of attorneys’ fees does not exceed the lesser of 15% of the principal amount found to be due or $4,500, the court need not require evidence on all of the factors set forth in Rule 2-703 (f)(3) if the party claiming the award produces evidence otherwise sufficient to demonstrate that the amount claimed is reasonable and does not exceed the amount that the claiming party has agreed to pay that party’s attorney. The evidence shall include at a minimum:
(A) a detailed description of the work performed, broken down by hours or factions thereof expended on each task;
(B) the amount or rate charged or agreed to in writing by the requesting party and the attorney; and
(C) the attorney’s customary fee for similar legal services.
(f) Part of judgment. — An award of attorneys’ fees shall be included in the judgment on the underlying cause of action but shall be separately stated.
Amendment History
Added effective January 1, 2014; amended effective July 1, 2021.
Committee Note & Source
Cross references. See Rule 2-705 for the procedure where a contract provides for an award of attorneys’ fees to a prevailing party in the litigation.
Committee note. Unlike a claim under Rule 2-703 based on fee-shifting permitted by law, where attorneys’ fees are an element of damages for breach of a contractual obligation, any award must be included in the judgment entered on the breach of contract claim. In complex cases, however, where the evidence regarding attorneys’ fees is likely to be extensive, it may be expedient to defer the presentation of such evidence and resolution of that claim until after a verdict or finding by the court establishing an entitlement to an award. See section (d) of this Rule. In that event, the admonition in the Committee note to Rule 2-703 (c) is especially critical - that, although the verdict or findings on the underlying cause of action should be docketed, no judgment should be entered thereon until the claim for attorneys’ fees is resolved and can be included in the judgment.
Committee note. This subsection preserves to the jury, in a breach of contract case where attorneys’ fees are part of the alleged damages, the right to determine whether an award should be made and, if so, in what amount, but preserves to the trial court the right to determine whether the award is reasonable. Under this approach, in the event of an appeal, the appellate court will have available both the jury’s and the trial court’s determination of reasonableness.
Committee note. Section (e) follows the approach set forth in Monmouth Meadows v. Hamilton, 416 Md. 325 (2010), for contractual fee-shifting cases generally. Subsection (e)(4) is intended to permit the court to excuse the need to consider all of the Rule 2-703 (f)(3) factors where the claim for attorneys’ fees does not exceed the lesser of 15% of the amount due or $4,500. Fees in those limited amounts are common in consumer transactions and have been found reasonable by the General Assembly in some of those settings. See Code, Commercial Law Article, §§ 12-307.1 (Consumer Loans) and 12-623 (Retail Installment Sales).
Source. This Rule is new.
Plain-English Summary
This rule has a narrow target: claims where a contract makes attorneys’ fees part of the damages owed for breaching it. It does not cover a contract clause that shifts fees to whichever side wins the litigation — that’s the subject of Rule 2-705. A party must plead the fee claim in the initial pleading, or promptly by amendment once grounds for it arise, and the scheduling conference follows the same pattern set out in Rule 2-703(c). Evidence on the claim ordinarily comes in during the case-in-chief, focused on the twelve factors in Rule 2-703(f)(3) or the streamlined factors described below, whichever applies. If the party seeking fees has asked for judgment by confession, the evidence establishing entitlement and reasonableness must go into the confession affidavit; if the confession is denied or struck and the case proceeds to trial, that evidence can be resubmitted there.
Who decides the award depends on how the underlying case is tried. If the court tries the case, the court decides both whether an award is required or permitted and, if so, its amount. If a jury tries the case, the jury decides — as part of its verdict, under the court’s instructions — whether to award fees for the breach and how much. Any party affected by that award can then move the court to check the amount against the same reasonableness standards; the court must modify it if it isn’t reasonable. That review doesn’t replace other post-verdict options such as a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, a new trial motion, or the court’s revisory power over judgments. For smaller claims — where the fee sought doesn’t exceed the lesser of 15% of the principal amount due or $4,500 — the rule allows a shortcut: the party need not prove every one of the twelve factors, so long as it shows the fee is reasonable and no more than what it agreed to pay its own attorney, backed by a task-by-task breakdown of hours, the agreed rate or amount, and the attorney’s customary fee for similar work. Whatever the amount, the award goes into the judgment on the underlying claim but must be stated separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is this rule different from Rule 2-705?
Rule 2-704 covers fees that are themselves an element of contract damages for breach. Rule 2-705 covers a contract clause that awards fees to whichever party prevails in the litigation. They’re mutually exclusive tracks with the same pleading and scheduling structure.
Can a jury decide how much I recover in attorneys’ fees?
Yes, when the underlying breach-of-contract claim is tried by a jury. The jury decides both whether to award fees and how much, as part of its verdict, though the court still reviews the amount for reasonableness on motion.
What is the 15%/$4,500 shortcut?
When the fee claim doesn’t exceed the lesser of 15% of the principal amount found due or $4,500, the claiming party can skip proof on all twelve Rule 2-703(f)(3) factors and instead show, with a task-by-task time breakdown, the agreed rate, and the customary fee for similar work, that the amount is reasonable and doesn’t exceed what it agreed to pay its own attorney.
Does asking the court to review a jury’s fee award for reasonableness use up my other post-trial options?
No. The rule says that review doesn’t preclude other relief available under the rules governing judgment notwithstanding the verdict, new trial motions, or the court’s revisory power over judgments.
Source & verification. Rule text, Committee Note, Source note, and
amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Maryland Rules, adopted by the
Supreme Court of Maryland. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
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