Opinion ID: 2681015
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: applicable standards of appellate review

Text: This appeal arises from both the Circuit Court’s denial of the State Agencies’ and the Developers’ Motions to Dismiss and its partial grant and partial denial of their collective Motion for Summary Judgment (we shall attribute hereafter the Motions to the State Agencies, with the understanding that the Developers joined them as well). Thus, the standard of review differs depending on context. We relate briefly the overarching principles that guide our review of the Circuit Court’s judgment here, but may repeat later the relevant portions in our discussion of the individual questions presented and related arguments. In reviewing whether the Circuit Court denied properly the State Agencies’ Motions to Dismiss, we employ the following principles: Considering a motion to dismiss a complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, a court must assume the truth of, and view in a light most favorable to the non-moving party, all well-pleaded facts and allegations contained in the complaint, as well as all inferences that may reasonably be drawn from them, and order dismissal only if the 19 Appellees included the merits of some of their arguments in their Motion to Dismiss the appeal. In their Brief, they chose not to repeat their arguments, but rather referenced their arguments stated in their Motion to Dismiss. Although we address these arguments in this case, we point out that ordinarily we do not permit parties to argue the merits of issues in a motion to dismiss. Permitting this practice permits improperly (i.e., without our prior permission) Appellees to have the final word on the argument (in their Reply to Appellants’ Response to Motion to Dismiss) and potentially to expand the number of pages permitted for the merits. 27 allegations and permissible inferences, if true, would not afford relief to the plaintiff, i.e., the allegations do not state a cause of action for which relief may be granted. Consideration of the universe of “facts” pertinent to the court's analysis of the motion are limited generally to the four corners of the complaint and its incorporated supporting exhibits, if any. The well-pleaded facts setting forth the cause of action must be pleaded with sufficient specificity; bald assertions and conclusory statements by the pleader will not suffice. Upon appellate review, the trial court's decision to grant such a motion is analyzed to determine whether the court was legally correct. RRC Ne., LLC v. BAA Maryland, Inc., 413 Md. 638, 643-44, 994 A.2d 430, 433-34 (2010) (internal citations omitted). With regard to the partial grant and partial denial of the summary judgment Motion, Barclay v. Briscoe, 427 Md. 270, 47 A.3d 560 (2012), serves as an apt authority iterating our standard of review: Under Maryland Rule 2–501, the grant of a motion for summary judgment is appropriate only “if the motion and response show that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the party in whose favor judgment is entered is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Rule 2–501(f). As we recently stated in Muskin v. State Dep't of Assessments & Taxation, 422 Md. 544, 30 A.3d 962 (2011), “[w]hether a circuit court's grant of summary judgment is proper in a particular case is a question of law, subject to a non-deferential review on appeal.” Muskin, 422 Md. at 554, 30 A.3d at 967 (citing Conaway v. Deane, 401 Md. 219, 243, 932 A.2d 571, 584 (2007)). Thus, “[t]he standard of review of a trial court's grant of a motion for summary judgment on the law is . . . whether the trial court's legal conclusions were legally correct.” “In reviewing a grant of summary judgment, we independently review the record to determine whether the parties generated a dispute of material fact and, if not, whether the moving party was entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” In determining whether a fact is material we have said that “a dispute as to facts relating to grounds upon which the decision is not rested is not a dispute with respect to a material fact and such dispute does not prevent the entry of summary judgment.” 28 We review the record in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and construe any reasonable inferences that may be drawn from the wellpled facts against the moving party. Further, an appellate court ordinarily should limit its review of a grant of a motion for summary judgment to “only the grounds upon which the trial court relied in granting summary judgment.” 427 Md. at 281-82, 47 A.3d at 566-67 (some internal citations omitted).