Court Opinion

ID: 9693689
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 16:57:07.085768+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:49.597451
License: Public Domain

BELL, C.J.,
Dissents.
*709Dissenting Opinion by BELL, C.J.
The question posed by Ms. H., the petitioner, in her petition for writ of certiorari is “[w]hether in a GINA proceeding, the right to a contested adjudicatory hearing may be waived only by the parent’s personal, knowing, intelligent and voluntary waiver.” The majority addresses, and resolves, that issue. In the process, however, it ignores a threshold issue, whose importance and need to be addressed are made strikingly obvious by a colloquy that occurred shortly after the parties, with Ms. H. present, placed on the record the agreement resolving the CIÑA case. That issue is whether Ms. H., having signed the mediation agreement negotiated between her attorney and Montgomery County (“Department”), continued to agree to it, or, as seems likely, withdrew her agreement after its entry on the record. The meaning of Ms. H.’s statements, and the trial court’s obligation to investigate that meaning, ought to be the true focus of our review.1
*710I.
A review of the relevant facts makes clear that the issue before us is the existence and nature of Ms. H.’s consent to the CINA proceedings. The Department filed, in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, a petition requesting that Blessen H. be declared a Child In Need of Assistance (“CINA”). Thereafter, Ms. H., Blessen’s mother, Ms. H.’s counsel, counsel for the Department, a social worker with the Department, counsel for Blessen, and Mr. A., Blessen’s father, appeared in the Circuit Court for the CINA adjudicatory hearing. As the parties had been unable to schedule a pretrial hearing, they were offered the opportunity to mediate the matter. All parties agreed to mediation, and the court adjourned while it took place.
Following the mediation, prior to their return to court, the parties and their counsel signed a written Mediated Consent Agreement.2 Pursuant to that agreement, Blessen would remain committed to the department and in foster care until a home study for her paternal grandparents could be completed by New Jersey Social Services, at which point Ms. C., the paternal grandmother, would obtain custody. Ms. H.’s visitation, supervised by the Department and located at the agency, would occur at least monthly for two or three hours per session.3 Further, Ms. H. would undergo a mental health evaluation.
The Mediated Consent Agreement was prefaced by the following statement:
*711“Having participated in a mediation session on Sept. 2, 2003, we, the undersigned parties, affirm that the following agreements were reached during the current mediation process. We are satisfied that the provisions of our agreement, as stated, are fair and reasonable, and we agree to abide by and fulfill the agreements we have made this day. We understand our Mediation Agreement is subject to review by the Court and to the extent that the Court has jurisdiction, the provisions of our agreement may be made Orders of the Court.”
Ms. H. and Mr. A. signed the agreement, as did counsel for the Department, counsel for Ms. H., and the mediator. Though the form contains a signature line for both the child and the child’s counsel, Blessen’s court-appointed attorney, neither appears to have signed it.
On their return to court, the parties represented that they had reached an agreement through mediation. The Court was provided with the mediation agreement, to which was attached the original petition with the words “Factual Basis for CINA, 9/2/03” handwritten at the top. After reviewing the documents, suggesting additional language be added to update the document as to Blessen’s location and to address an outstanding warrant pertaining to Blessen while she was in Ms. H.’s custody, and leaving “it up to [the Department] to draft some language” to that effect,4 the Court was advised by counsel, including Ms. H.’s counsel, “that these facts should be sustained and form the basis for a finding of CINA[]”. In response, the Court ruled:
“All right. I will make such a finding, that based on the agreement of all counsel and parties, because Mr. A. is here without counsel, that the facts alleged are now facts sustained, and that they form a basis for a finding of CINA, *712and I will so find, that the child Blessen H. is a child in need of assistance.”
It then addressed the recommendations for Blessen’s care and visitation, contained in the mediation agreement.
Although not a part of the mediation agreement, the Court next considered a no-contact order, directed to Blessen’s maternal grandmother, Ms. G. Ms. H.’s counsel argued that the order prohibiting Ms. G. from contacting the child be lifted and supervised visitation be permitted. The Court refused to accept that recommendation. When called back into the courtroom and advised of that decision, Ms. G. asked to be permitted to explain the behavior alleged to underlie the order. Thereafter, the following colloquy occurred:
“THE COURT: You know, you don’t really need to. I don’t know whether there are criminal charges still pending or not.
“MS. GARNETT: She did it, the mother.
“THE COURT: If you don’t go there anyway, then it doesn’t matter if I say no contact with the child until further court order. But that’s what it’s going to say.
“MS. H.: I can’t deal with this. It’s so many lies on this place. It’s just ridiculous.
“MS. CARTER: Shhh.
“MS. H.: It really is. You know. I’m trying to be the best parent I can be. I have already been slandered by DHS. Sheldon don’t like some of this. And I have swallowed my pride to try to get this court hearing done. Okay. I don’t deserve this. I’ve been the best mother I can be. I have listened to you, Your Honor, have saying things to me, and you haven’t even asked me about my own character. You haven’t even asked me—
“THE COURT: Asked you about your own what?
“MS. H.: My own character. How did I end up in this situation. Why was I traveling? Why was my child not in a stable home? Some of these things are not—
*713“THE COURT: Well, you have an attorney, ma’am, and I was listening to your attorney.
“MS. H.: I can’t speak no more, Your Honor. I really can’t. “THE COURT: Well, then, don’t.
“MS. H.: You can go ahead and do the trial. I need to sit outside.
“THE COURT: Well, there isn’t any trial. This is finished. I just wanted to explain to Ms. G. what I had arrived at. So, the order will generate as I just said.
“MS CARTER: Your Honor, can I speak to my client outside, please.
“THE COURT: Sure. Do we have a good address on everybody? Do we have a six month?
“THE CLERK: I have a date, Your Honor.
“THE COURT: What is the date?
“THE CLERK: March 9, 2004 at 8:30, Courtroom 18.
“THE COURT: March 9, this courtroom.
“MS. G.: I will respect your decision, Judge.
“THE COURT: Thank you, Ms. G. Do we have your address, so I can send you a copy of the order?
“MS. G: _A_H_Way.
“THE COURT: Wait. My law clerk will hand it down to you.
“MS. G: I think Ms. Rogers has it. Don’t you Ms. Rogers?
“MS ROGERS: I do have it. I can provide it to the Court.
“THE COURT: Okay. That’s fine.
(Whereupon the hearing was concluded.)”
Three days after the hearing, the Adjudication and Disposition Order, reflecting the agreement orally discussed in court, was filed.5 The docket entries for that day state that an *714adjudication order, finding certain facts were sustained, was entered, as was an order for commitment/care/custody to the Department. The docket entries for the day of the hearing indicate that the Mediated Consent Agreement was filed, the case was called for an adjudicatory hearing, an agreement was placed on the record, the court “[found] the facts sustained,” a disposition hearing was held, Blessen was found to be a CINA, the court placed Blessen with a relative, and a review hearing date was set. Thus, both the docket entries and the filing date stamped on the Order make clear that the Order, although signed earlier, was not actually filed until September 5, 2003, three days after the hearing.
*715II.
“A consent judgment or consent order is an agreement of the parties with respect to the resolution of the issues in the case or in settlement of the case, that has been embodied in a court order and entered by the court, thus evidencing its acceptance by the court.” Long v. State, 371 Md. 72, 82, 807 A.2d 1, 6-7 (2002), citing Jones v. Hubbard, 356 Md. 513, 529, 740 A.2d 1004, 1013 (1999) and Chernick v. Chernick, 327 Md. 470, 478, 610 A.2d 770, 774 (1992). “Consent judgments are hybrids, having attributes of both contracts and judicial decrees,” Long, 371 Md. at 82, 807 A.2d at 7; however, “this Court has repeatedly held that ‘consent judgments should normally be given the same force and effect as any other judgment, including judgments rendered after litigation.’ ” hi, citing Jones, 356 Md. at 532, 740 A.2d at 1014. As the United States Supreme Court has explained:
“Consent decrees are entered into by parties to a case after careful negotiation has produced agreement on their precise terms. The parties waive their right to litigate the issues involved in the case and thus save themselves the time, expense, and inevitable risk of litigation. Naturally, the agreement reached normally embodies a compromise ...”
United States v. Armour & Co., 402 U.S. 673, 681-82, 91 S.Ct. 1752, 1757, 29 L.Ed.2d 256, 263 (1971).6
Maryland Rule 2-601 sets forth the method by which a judgment is entered and becomes final.7 We have previously stated that, in accordance with Rule 2-601 and Rule l-202(n),
*716“ ‘two acts must occur for an action by a court to be deemed the granting of a judgment: the court must render a final order and the order must be entered on the docket by the clerk.’ Once both steps have occurred, rendition and entry, a judgment has been created. ‘Rendition of judgment is ... the court’s pronouncement, by spoken word in open court or by written order filed with the clerk, of its decision upon the matter submitted to it for adjudication.’ The entry of a judgment is the ‘purely ministerial act’ of placing a judgment in the permanent record of a court.
“Whether a judgment has been rendered is a determination that must be made on a case by case basis and that ‘turns on whether the court indicated clearly that it had fully adjudicated the issue submitted and had reached a final decision on the matter at that time.’ A reviewing court will focus on the words spoken and the actions taken in the lower court to make such a determination.”
Board of Liquor License Com’rs for Balt. City v. Fells Point Café, 344 Md. 120, 127-128, 685 A.2d 772, 775-776 (1996) *717(citations omitted), citing Davis v. Davis, 335 Md. 699, 646 A.2d 365 (1994). When, as here, a court indicates that its written opinion or oral remarks, made from the bench, are to be followed by a written order, the final judgment occurs upon the signing and filing of the written order unless the court subsequently decides not to issue a written order, instead directing judgment in some other way, or unless the written order is collateral to the judgment. Rohrbeck v. Rohrbeck, 318 Md. 28, 41-42, 566 A.2d 767, 774 (1989). It is clear that, in the present case, a written order was contemplated: the court stated “the order will generate as I just said” and set about collecting addresses “so I can send you a copy of the order[ ].”
In the case sub judice, and, pursuant to the aforementioned principles of law, the oral agreement submitted in open court on September 2, 2003 was, in part, a consent judgment, i.e. with regard to Blessen’s status as CINA, her custody, both parents’ visitation rights, Ms. H.’s mental health evaluation, and both parties’ obligation to attend parenting classes, and, in part, a “pure” court order, i.e. with respect to the no-contact order. This Order did not become a final judgment, pursuant to Rule 2-601, however, until September 5, 2003, when it was filed with the clerk and entered on the docket. This is so because, as is clear from the final remarks made during the September 2 hearing, the court contemplated writing and filing a written order based on its oral findings and the mediated agreement between the parties.
It is clear from Ms. H.’s comments that, at the very least, she either did not fully understand either the consequences, or the extent, of the agreement to which she had assented and which the court had outlined during the hearing, or that she may no longer have been satisfied with it. She stated:
“I can’t deal with this. It’s so many lies on this place. It’s just ridiculous ... It really is. You know. I’m trying to be the best parent I can be. I have already been slandered by DHS. Sheldon don’t like some of this. And I have swallowed my pride to try to get this court hearing done. Okay. I don’t deserve this. I’ve been the best mother I can be.”
*718She went on to chide the court that it had not asked her about her “own character,” or the reasons why she had not maintained a stable home for Blessen. When the Court indicated its deference to her counsel, whom it thought was speaking for her, she concluded: “I can’t speak no more, Your Honor. I really can’t,” adding that the court could proceed with “the trial” while she remained outside of the courtroom. This was said despite the fact that it was clear from the proceedings, and especially the mediation agreement, that there would be no trial; Ms. H.’s agreement to Blessen’s CINA status via that agreement meant that there was nothing, aside from Blessen’s placement, the parents’ visitation and services to be provided to them by the Department, and Ms. G.’s access to the child, to be resolved. Although Ms. H.’s counsel requested time to speak with her outside of the courtroom, and although the Court granted that request, the hearing was concluded shortly thereafter, after the social worker had given the clerk a copy of the mediation agreement and the Court had indicated that a final order would be issued, presumably by mail.
Because Ms. H. made the aforementioned, at best ambiguous, statements prior to the entry of judgment, albeit after the consent had been tendered and the court had indicated its intent to accept it, the Court had an obligation to question her further as to their meaning. More specifically, given the circumstances and the seriousness of the issue, it should have ascertained whether, in view of their ambiguity, the statements were an expression of her intent to withdraw her consent to the CINA finding.
In Chernick v. Chernick, 327 Md. 470, 610 A.2d 770 (1992), we considered whether, and when, a party could withdraw consent to a consent agreement. In Chemick, Mr. and Ms. Chernick entered into, and signed, an agreement resolving all matters concerning their divorce. Id. at 474, 610 A.2d at 771-772. Pursuant to that agreement, the parties cancelled their trial date, id., and mailed a copy of the agreement, as a proposed consent order, to the clerk, who filed it without first obtaining a judge’s signature. Id. at 474-475, 610 A.2d at *719771-772. Approximately two weeks later, Ms. Chernick’s attorney filed a line stating that she had withdrawn her consent to the proposed consent order. Id. at 474-475, 610 A.2d at 772. We concluded that the proposed consent order was actually a proposed consent judgment, id. at 478, 610 A.2d at 773, and acknowledged that “entry of a judgment by consent implies that the terms and conditions have been agreed upon and consent thereto given in open court or by filed stipulation.” Id. at 484, 610 A.2d at 776. We held, however, that because both Chernicks had agreed, and consented to, the terms of the order at the time that it was filed with the clerk, Ms. Chernick could not subsequently withdraw her consent, even though it had not been signed by the court when she sought to do so. Id. at 484, 610 A.2d at 777.8
Similarly, in Dorsey v. Wroten, 35 Md.App. 359, 370 A.2d 577 (1977), which we cited approvingly in Chernick, 327 Md. at 483-484, 610 A.2d at 776, the parties agreed to mediate their dispute. Dorsey, 35 Md.App. at 360, 370 A.2d at 578. Having reached a successful resolution, they communicated that fact to the trial court, id. at 360, 370 A.2d at 579, who asked counsel to prepare a consent decree and present it to the court for signature. Id. Several hours later, prior to the presentment of the decree, Dorsey informed his attorney that he no longer assented to the settlement agreement, and his attorney met with the trial judge and advised him accordingly. Id. at 360-361, 370 A.2d at 579. “The trial judge stated that he considered the matter settled and that he would sign the ‘consent’ decree when it was presented,” and, in fact, did so. Id. at 361, 370 A.2d at 579. The Court of Special Appeals held that, although Dorsey had orally agreed to a settlement, “it is obvious that he withdrew that consent before the final meeting *720with the trial judge. It is also apparent that both the trial judge and the appellees had full knowledge that the appellant was not consenting to the decree two days before it was signed.” Id. at 362, 370 A.2d at 579. Accordingly, the judgment was reversed. Id. The court also noted, as we had indicated in Chernick, 327 Md. at 483-484, 610 A.2d at 776, that “by its nature ... a consent decree cannot be entered unless both parties agree to the order which is presented to the clerk.” Id. at 362 n. 1, 370 A.2d at 579 n. 1.
These cases, together with Rule 2-601, indicate that if the statements Ms. H. made in open court were sufficient to indicate an intention to withdraw her consent to the mediation agreement and, in fact, she did so, the withdrawal would have occurred prior to judgment being issued in the case. Since a consent decree cannot be entered unless both parties agree to its terms, the consent order would be invalid.9 On this record, it is not clear whether Ms. H. intended to withdraw her consent. Her statements were so ambiguous that the trial court should have been prompted to, upon hearing them, inquire further—to, through direct questioning, ascertain the meaning of her statements and to determine her intent. Specifically, the court should have inquired as to whether she was still agreeing to the facts in the CINA petition and intended to remain bound by the mediation agreement.
Commercial Carrier Corp. v. Guevara, 541 So.2d 774 (Fla. App.1989) is instructive. In that case, the appellee had filed a six-point counterclaim in response to appellant’s original complaint, Count III of which alleged a statutory violation that, if proven, would have allowed the appellee to collect attorney’s *721fees. Id. at 774. The appellant “made an offer of judgment to appellee,” pursuant to which judgment on the counterclaim, not to include attorney’s fees, would be entered against the appellant. Id. The offer was accepted by the appellee, who, when giving notice of acceptance, stated that it did not include Count III of the counterclaim. Id. Subsequently, the appellant filed a written objection to the entry of any judgment on the offer and acceptance “on the grounds that no additional entitlement by way of attorney fees was contemplated by the parties.” Id. The trial court entered judgment over the appellant’s objection. Id. On appeal, the District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third Circuit, reversed. It held: “it was an abuse of discretion by the trial judge to fail to disapprove the offer and acceptance when confronted by a clear and certain expression of the parties’ lack of understanding as to what was intended by the offer.” Id.
Similarly, in Burnaman v. Heaton, 150 Tex. 833, 240 S.W.2d 288 (1951), the parties announced in court that they had settled their case. Id. at 335, 240 S.W.2d at 289. Later that same day, the trial judge made a notation on the docket reflecting the fact of settlement, not the amount, but only after the plaintiffs attorney had obtained “confirmation of the notation from the attorney for the defendants.” Id. at 335, 240 S.W.2d at 289-290.
The trial judge having been advised by a clerk that the plaintiff was “trying to back out on the settlement,” id. at 336, 240 S.W.2d at 290, the attorneys for both parties appeared in court and again announced their settlement. Id. This was entered on the docket, id.; however, judgment was not entered at that time.
One week later, the trial judge received a letter from the plaintiff, in which she stated that she did not authorize the settlement. Id. Following a hearing to consider whether judgment should be entered, the plaintiff having been required to show cause why not and the defendant having filed a motion to enter judgment, the trial judge entered judgment as the *722defendant had requested and over the plaintiffs objection. Id. at 336, 240 S.W.2d at 290.
On appeal, the Texas Supreme Court determined that the trial court should not have accepted the settlement because “the announcement of settlement and docket entry were made after the court had received information that the plaintiff was dissatisfied ... the record reveals that she was opposed to the settlement and is still insisting upon her right to be heard upon the merits of her claim.” Id., at 336-337, 240 S.W.2d at 290. As the judgment entered was a consent judgment, consent was required at the “very moment” the court made the agreement the judgment of the court. Id. at 338, 240 S.W.2d at 291. It further stated:
“When a trial court has knowledge that one of the parties to a suit does not consent to a judgment agreed to by his attorney, the trial court should refuse to give the agreement the sanction of the court so as to make it the judgment of the court. Any judgment rendered on the agreement under such circumstances will be set aside. The same reasons which impel the setting aside of a consent judgment rendered by the court with knowledge that a party does not consent thereto will, in the interest of justice, also impel the setting aside of a consent judgment rendered when the court is in possession of information which is reasonably calculated to prompt the court to make further inquiry into the party’s consent thereto, which inquiry, if reasonably pursued, would disclose the want of consent ...
“We think the information in the possession of the court was clearly sufficient and of such a nature as to put the court on notice that plaintiffs consent to the judgment rendered on March 23rd might be wanting and to require the court to make further inquiry before rendering judgment.”
Id. at 339-340, 240 S.W.2d at 291-292 (citations omitted). See also Cureton v. Robbins, 319 S.W.2d 735, 737 (Tex.Civ.App. 1958); Gregory v. White, 604 S.W.2d 402, 403 (Tex.Civ.App. 1980); Trevathan v. Akins, 712 S.W.2d 559, 560 (Tex.App. 1986).
*723Ms. H.’s statements in open court clearly demonstrate a lack of understanding of the proceedings, of the mediation agreement, or of both, and, possibly, a desire to withdraw her consent to the CINA finding. Accordingly, and consistent with the nature of a consent judgment, in which consent must be present at the very moment the judgment is entered, the trial court had a duty to question her further as to the meaning of her statements and her intention, and to determine whether she still continued to consent to the CINA finding.
Accordingly, I would reverse the Court of Special Appeals and remand for further proceedings.

. Under Maryland Rule 8-131(b) we have the discretion to review issues although they were not explicitly raised by the petition for certiorari. See Simpkins v. Ford Motor Credit Co., 389 Md. 426, 435 n. 14, 886 A.2d 126, 131 n. 14 (2005); State v. Parker, 334 Md. 576, 596-597, 640 A.2d 1104, 1114 (1994); see also Brewer v. Brewer, 386 Md. 183, 191, 872 A.2d 48, 53 (2005). In the case sub judice, resolution of an underlying issue is much preferable to resolution strictly on the basis of the petition for certiorari. Rule 8-131(b) provides as follows, in pertinent part:
“In Court of Appeals—Additional Limitations. (1) Prior appellate decision. Unless otherwise provided by the order granting the writ of certiorari, in reviewing a decision rendered by the Court of Special Appeals or by a circuit court acting in an appellate capacity, the Court of Appeals ordinarily will consider only an issue that has been raised in the petition for certiorari or any cross-petition and that has been preserved for review by the Court of Appeals.
Further, in her brief Ms. H. did argue, though in the context of the waiver of her rights, that she did not understand the proceedings:
“As made evident by her plea that the court should “go ahead and do the trial,” (App.47), she was under the impression that proceeding by way of a contested hearing was still an option available to her. Indeed, absent any advisement to the contrary, she could not have known or understood that she had foreclosed that avenue.”
In doing so, she implicitly argues that the trial court should have inquired as the meaning of her statements, as those statements may *710have indicated her desire to withdraw her consent to the mediation agreement.

. The CINA petition, amended by inserting at the top “Factual Basis for CINA, 9/2/03,” was attached to the Mediated Consent Agreement, as the factual basis for the CINA finding.

. The mediated agreement did not specify whether this visitation arrangement applied to Ms. H., Mr. A., or to both. Subsequent discussions on the record, however, indicate that Ms. H.’s supervised visitation was to be monthly, while Mr. A.'s visitation was to be unsupervised and at least weekly.

. The Department’s counsel made the additions requested by the court. Prior to the conclusion of the hearing, she provided them to the court, representing that she had shown them to the other parties, whom, we must presume, agreed to them.

. The Mediated Consent Agreement was less detailed than both the discussion in court and the Order issued by the court. The Order, after stating that Blessen’s status as a CINA had been proven by a preponderance of the evidence, in pertinent part:
"ORDERED that the Respondent Child, Blessen H., shall:
*714"1. be committed to the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services and under the jurisdiction of the Court;
"2. be placed in foster care, pending an Interstate Compact Home Study for the Respondent’s paternal grandmother, Leatha C.;
"3. be placed in the home of her paternal grandmother once the home study is completed and approved;
"4. have supervised visitation with her father, Sheldon A., minimum weekly, until such time that the Respondent moves to New Jersey, then visitation shall be liberal and unsupervised;
"5. have supervised visitation with her mother, Tynetta H., minimum monthly (minimum three hours a day if she visits once a month; and two hours a day if she visits twice a month) and under the direction of the Department;
"6. have NO CONTACT with her maternal grandmother, Rose G., until further Court order, and it is further
"ORDERED that the Respondent’s father, Sheldon A. shall:
"1. bring the Respondent Child to Maryland for visitation with her mother;
"2. participate in and complete parenting classes, and it is further "ORDERED that the Respondent's mother, Tynetta H., shall;
"1. give the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services seven to ten days notice of visitation;
"2. participate in a mental health evaluation and follow all recommendations of the evaluation;
"3. participate in and complete parenting classes ...”
It was dated the date of the hearing.
The court order differed from the Mediated Consent Agreement in that it specified the visitation arrangements as applied to each parent, required both parents to attend parenting classes, and maintained a no contact order between Blessen and Ms. G. As we have seen, the parties appeared to agree in open court to the details of visitation and to parenting classes. It is clear, on the other hand, that Ms. H. did not agree to the no-contact order placed upon her mother. Consequently, the no-contact order was purely an order of the court.

. We have also stated that a consent agreement, or settlement agreement, is a contract between two parties which is conditioned upon the court's acceptance of its terms. Chernick v. Chernick, 327 Md. 470, 479, 610 A.2d 770, 774 (1992). This is consistent with the understanding of the parties to this case, for, as previously noted, the mediation agreement was prefaced, in part, with the statement: “we understand our Mediation Agreement is subject to review by the Court and to the extent that the Court has jurisdiction, the provisions of our agreement maybe made Orders of the Court.”

. Maryland Rule 2-601 reads as follows:
*716"(a) Prompt entry—Separate document. Each judgment shall be set forth on a separate document. Upon a verdict of a jury or a decision by the court allowing recovery only of costs or a specified amount of money or denying all relief, the clerk shall forthwith prepare, sign, and enter the judgment, unless the court orders otherwise. Upon a verdict of a jury or a decision by the court granting other relief, the court shall promptly review the form of the judgment presented and, if approved, sign it, and the clerk shall forthwith enter the judgment as approved and signed. A judgment is effective only when so set forth and when entered as provided in section (b) of this Rule. Unless the court orders otherwise, entry of the judgment shall not be delayed pending determination of the amount of costs.
"(b) Method of entry—Date of judgment. The clerk shall enter a judgment by making a record of it in writing on the file jacket, or on a docket within the file, or in a docket book, according to the practice of each court, and shall record the actual date of the entiy. That date shall be the date of the judgment.
"(c) Recording and indexing. Promptly after entry, the clerk shall (1) record and index the judgment, except a judgment denying all relief without costs, in the judgment records of the court and (2) note on the docket the date the clerk sent copies of the judgment in accordance with Rule 1-324."
The term “judgment” is defined by Maryland Rule l-202(n) as "any order of court final in its nature entered pursuant to these rules.”

. Our actual holding was limited as follows: “Once a consent judgment is agreed to by the parties, executed by the parties or their authorized agents, filed with the court, and the case is taken off the trial calendar, the court may sign that consent order. The fact that one of the parties may have changed his or her mind shortly before or shortly after the submitted consent order was signed by the court does not invalidate the signed consent judgment.” Chernick, 327 Md. at 484, 610 A.2d at 777.

. We would certainly not be the only Court to so hold. See Woods v. Woods, 167 S.W.3d 932 (Tex.App.2005) (consent must exist at the time judgment is rendered in order to be valid, and an oral order is not a judgment if there is an intent to enter judgment in the future); Williamson v. Williamson, 224 N.C. 474, 31 S.E.2d 367 (1944)
("consent of the parties must still subsist at the time the court is called upon to exercise its jurisdiction and sign the consent judgment”); Lee v. Rhodes, 227 N.C. 240, 41 S.E.2d 747 (same); Jacobs v. Steinbrink, 242 App.Div. 197, 273 N.Y.S. 498 (1934) (consent may be withdrawn at any time prior to entry of judgment).