PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERMaria Patterson

As a child, I watched LA law and wanted to be a lawyer. I loved the excitement of trial work and the thrill of fighting for people that needed help and had been ‘wronged’ in some way. With this inspiration, I started trying car accident cases. I tried these cases on behalf of many of the largest insurance companies. As a result of my success, these insurance companies entrusted me with bigger and bigger cases to try. After a while, I realized that the idealized lawyer who I hoped to become was being stifled. I did not feel that my job for the insurance companies was to help people but, rather, was to minimize or attack their injury claims from car accidents. I often tried cases against plaintiffs’ lawyers that lacked my trial experience and I was able to obtain great results that deep down I considered unfair. Looking for more, I stopped working for insurance companies and became an attorney for Prince George’s County. Again, I was defending the County for injury claims made against the police and other County employees. I was frustrated.

In 2012, I opened the Law Offices of Maria K. Patterson and began helping those who were injured. Finally, I was fighting for people and not governments or corporations. My very first jury trial as a plaintiff’s lawyer was against an insurance company that I had previously worked for. I knew what they would do and it was my job to stop them. I obtained a verdict over the policy limits for a client who was not credited by his insurance company. That thrill has stayed with me and is why I feel like I have become the lawyer that I always wanted to be as a child.

Maria Patterson has been recognized as a Super Lawyer and as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer by The National Trial Lawyers since 2014. She is a 1996 graduate of the Catholic University School of Law with 17 years of trial experience. Early in her career, at Sasscer, Clagett & Bucher in Upper Marlboro, Maryland she honed her skills as a trial attorney. Thereafter, Maria Patterson worked as a trial attorney for State Farm Insurance Company at the Law Offices of Timothy S. Smith in Greenbelt, Maryland. Before starting in private practice, Maria Patterson worked as an Associate County Attorney for Prince George’s County in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, handling numerous high profile jury trial cases. These cases frequently involved allegations of police misconduct and abuse. Some of these cases were chronicled in the Washington Post and other national media outlets. She was appointed as one of 7 board members to the Anne Arundel County Board of Appeals by Jessica Haire, the District 7 council member. This board hears appeals from decisions of Anne Arundel County Agencies including animal control, personnel and planning and zoning matters. She has also been appointed by Governor Hogan to the Anne Arundel County Judicial nominating committee. The Judicial Nominating Committee interviews and recommends nominees for judges of the Circuit Court and District Court for Anne Arundel County. Maria Patterson has also been appointed by the Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission as a peer review committee member. A peer review committee panel hears matters brought by bar council involving allegations of professional misconduct or incapacitation.

Maria Patterson also offers mediation services for family law matters including separation, divorce, child custody, and financial decision. She has completed the parent coordination training in order to serve as a parent coordinator for Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. She is also available as a mediator for civil cases including personal injury matters. Her experience as a plaintiff’s attorney and an insurance defense attorney makes her well suited to bring both sides together for a practical resolution.

Attorney Maria Patterson has tried over 100 jury trials and has cross examined hundreds of witnesses. Her extensive trial experience in adversarial cases makes her extremely effective at handling Protective Order cases. Her success as a trial attorney while at State Farm Insurance Company earned Maria Patterson the designation as a Top 1% Car Accident Attorney.

Lawyer Maria Patterson also has experience as a Maryland criminal defense attorney. Protective Order cases frequently involve allegations of criminal misconduct such as child abuse, assault, stalking and telephone misuse.
Maria Patterson frequently receives referrals from prominent Maryland Family Law attorneys to pursue and defend Protective Order cases. These cases are almost always contested and often viewed with skepticism by the trial judges. Protective Order cases have been misused by some spouses to gain temporary use over the family home and as leverage in divorce and child custody cases. On the other hand, abusive spouses rarely admit to transgressions that usually are only witnessed by the complaining spouse or a child. The seriousness and potential consequences of a faulty ruling have landed several Maryland judges in the national media spotlight. Judges are often conflicted by concerns that the failure to enter a Protective Order may be followed by a serious domestic violence incident or on the other hand that the dispute should be handled through more traditional family law proceedings. It is essential to have an experienced attorney to help organize and present evidence to convince the trial judge of legitimate Protective Order cases and to highlight the weaknesses of legally insufficient claims.

If you need a Protective Order issued or a Protective Order has been sought against you please contact attorney Maria Patterson at 301-888-4878 to arrange a consultation at her Anne Arundel County offices in Annapolis, Maryland. Attorney Maria Patterson handles Protective Order cases in Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, Charles, Calvert and Montgomery Counties.