"The Robing Room: MD State Judges

Hon. Susan M. Souder	See Rating Details
Associate Circuit Judge Circuit Court
Baltimore County County 3rd Circuit	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 4.9 - 26 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: 2.0 - 9 rating(s)	Please send me alerts on this judge E-mail Address:

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Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.

General Rating Criteria

* Temperament		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Scholarship		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Industriousness		(1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Ability to Handle Complex Litigation		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punctuality		(1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* General Ability as a Trial Judge		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flexibility In Scheduling		(1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)

Criminal Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation		(1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
General Inclination Regarding Bail		(1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Plea Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)

Civil Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation		(1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Involvement in Settlement Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
General Inclination		(1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)

Comments

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What others have said about Hon. Susan M. Souder

Comments

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD7722
Rating:1.0

Comments:
She is a racist!!!

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD7721
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
This lady sent me to jail for 5 years. First time ever going to jail. For an embezzlement case she is very biased and racist. You will not get a fair trial. I lost my job. Car and house because of this evil woman. I was almost killed in jail and bullied and have suffered several health problems God is the last judge and she better get right iwith God or I know she burn in hell fire.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD7463
Rating:1.3

Comments:
Incompetent, arrogant, rude to parties and counsel; rude to jury members; rulings conflicted with each other in complex case; steered result based on party's inability to fund appeal and her dislike of party and counsel based on a prior incident when she was a private attorney, also incompetent then.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD7436
Rating:1.0

Comments:
Biased, arrogant, unreasonable rulings.

Other

Comment #: MD6286
Rating:1.0

Comments:
This woman is a monster who will side with the father and hates women. I was a good mother and I lost majority of my custody for no reason. She also tried to screw me out of my rightful half in the divorce. It was so bad we had to file with the court of special appeals. That only ends me back before her when they overturn the verdict. Best thing to do is to try and vote her out in 2020 when her seat is up for reelection!!

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD6282
Rating:4.8

Comments:
Has her own special rules. Very difficult, strict, and serious. Unpleasant to try a case before her.

Other

Comment #: MD6111
Rating:1.0

Comments:
This women is not reasonable at all. I was not the defendant, but a loved one. She spoke with our attorney before even entering the courtroom and told him her decision before she even took the time to hear the details of the incident which at this time is all hear say and my loved one is sitting in jail with no hard evidence against him.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD5316
Rating:1.3

Comments:
Should not be a judge does not provide fare trials to educated women of color as an attorney nor defendant

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD4635
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
I refuse to address her with a title she is ignorant bias, pro father, and holds no regard for the best interest of a child!!! If more people would file complaints against her maybe she will come down off of her high horse. She will separate a child from their mother not caring how it affects the child nor the parent.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD4633
Rating:5.8

Comments:
No Judge in their right mind would give full custody to a parent that has tested positive on a drug test and has 7 outstanding drinking and driving for the second time. Also on Probation for destruction of property, lived five different places in 6 months, the only alternative answer I can find is that this judges boyfriend is best friends with this parents Lawyer. Judge, boyfriend, lawyer sounds like a plan to me. This is my conclusion to bad Judgement

Other

Comment #: MD4408
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Judged and denied my case before it even went through the discovery process.

Other

Comment #: MD3903
Rating:8.0

Comments:
Judge Souder is very scary. Very hard to read but VERY VERY fair. Recently had her in a custody case where we were represented but our defendant was not. Judge Souder went above what normal judges would to help the defendant represent themselves. She is firm, no nonsense but very fair.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD3080
Rating:9.4

Comments:
An independent scholar of the law, willing to research and determine the law, not swayed by large law firm dandies or bullied by the prosecutor's office. Has taken a lot of criticism for exposing the shortfalls of fingerprint I.d.s and other Fry-Reid failing shortcuts. A real breath of fresh air. Wish there were more like her.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD3013
Rating:1.7

Comments:
She is the absolute worst judge u have stood in front of. May her and her family rot in hell. No regard for others life. Very unfair and harsh.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD2148
Rating:9.1

Comments:
She has a very good demeanor, and is good with child witnesses. She is focused on how best to conclude the case, and is very patient with litigants and witnesses alike, as well as extremely conscious of the importance of the decisions that she is asked to make as far as custody matters are concerned. She is very fair.

Other

Comment #: MD2116
Rating:1.0

Comments:
She split the custody of my two little girls, despite the court psychologist strongly recommending that they live with me and have visitation with my ex. Then, she "strongly suggested" that I not appeal, or she "would give both kids to my ex." She is a bully and a disgrace to the system. Additionally, she scolded my attorney for asking permission to sit during his closing statements. He had recently had back surgery -- she brought in a large, armed guard to make sure that he complied with this or he was going to be in contempt of court. Seriously? She is the worst judge in the state!

Prosecutor

Comment #: MD2115
Rating:1.1

Comments:
She gave full custody to my abusive ex because I lived too far away. She is an idiot.

Other

Comment #: MD2113
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
She "sucks" big time.

Other

Comment #: MD2112
Rating:9.0

Comments:
Judge Souder is even-handed and fair, but she expects attorneys on both sides to be prepared, know procedure, have filed their motions and other papers in a timely fashion, and be able to cite case law, statutes or Maryland Rules to support their arguments. If she shows annoyance, it is usually because someone is unprepared. Sometimes it is because the person is showing disrespect to the court by being argumentative, or by interrupting or not listening. On the flip side, she often volunteers to hear self-represented litigants and move their cases along. In trial, she oversees jury selection efficiently and easily rules on objections. She does her homework.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1991
Rating:9.3

Comments:
A very straightforward and informed judge!

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1990
Rating:9.6

Comments:
Judge Souder is very fair. She is intelligent and informed about the law, and knows just about every basis for objections. From my experience with Judge Souder, lawyers are able to present their arguments freely without interruptions. Judge Souder remains neutral with an open mind.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1863
Rating:8.7

Comments:
Intelligent - Respectful to both the attorney and their clients. Very attentive to the facts of the case

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1725
Rating:3.9

Comments:
Very pro-business anti-plaintiff. She is smart, but she is activist-smart, not honest-smart. Her intelligence just lets her accomplish the ends of her bias. Her temperament is very good. If she would make calls fairly, and not harbor such animosity toward plaintiffs, she'd be a great judge.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1649
Rating:9.2

Comments:
Competent, respectfuly and unbiased.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1615
Rating:10.0

Comments:
She is very thorough - very fair - very well versed in the law.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1604
Rating:1.0

Comments:
she is rude, odius, bias, don't know the law, don't follow the law, is CSS side, she lies, holds evidence, a total MESS if a "Judge" she will come down off her so call throne

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1496
Rating:2.6

Comments:
Embarrassingly rude and disrespectful to most attorneys. She also once criticized the trial strategy of a defense attorney in a written order. Baltimore County probably has the laziest bench, but she's the worst re: temperment. Sad, really.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1440
Rating:9.4

Comments:
Judge Souder is very even-handed and never takes sides in a case, regardless of who the lawyer might be. The best part of trying a case in front of her is that she NEVER jumps in to interfere and allows the lawyers to try their own cases.

Other

Comment #: MD1390
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Last several posters, Your remarks probably violate MRPC 8.2(a), and may expose you to a suspension. See, Bd. of Prof'l Responsibility v. Davidson, 205 P.3d 1008 (2009); In re Riley, 691 P.2d 695 (1984). See also, In re Madison, 282 S.W.3d 350 (Mo., 2009); Anthony v. Va. State Bar , 270 Va. 601 (2005); In re Nathan, 671 N.W.2d 578 (Minn., 2003); Miss. Bar v. Lumumba, 912 So. 2d 871 (2005).

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1389
Rating:1.5

Comments:
A tragic and dim-witted hack of a Judge. Total disgrace.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1377
Rating:1.9

Comments:
This judge was simply completely wrong on the law. It was only after filing a Motion for Reconsideration that the judge realized her incorrect ruling and amended her order. The most disappointing part was that she would not take a moment and listen to me state the law to her during oral argument, thus necessitating my Motion for Reconsideration.

Other

Comment #: MD1355
Rating:1.0

Comments:
Judge Souder is incompetent, disrespectful, and arrogant. She is an embarassment to the Baltimore County Court System. She needs to be removed.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD1287
Rating:1.1

Comments:
My one and only experience with Judge Souter came early in her career.
Due to a major (very memorable) dispute she had when an attorney with our attorney we asked her to recuse herself. She refused claiming no memory of this very significant event then proceeded to tilt the entire trial against us. It appeared so obviuosly biased that we began to worry from hour one of this 3 day trial.
Ultimately the jury ruled against us (no suprise there) then perhaps due to the poisoned atomosphere refused to be polled. We successfully appealed based on her decision to allow damning and obviously excluded evidence (the silver lining is we created good case law) to be heard by the jury. Based on her incomepetence the appeals court reversed and remanded. At new trial we once again drew Souder and stupidly didn't ask her the 2nd time to recuse herself. Any judge worth their salt would have voluntarily recused themselves having been so embarrassed by the litigants but then she isn't worth her salt. She rewarded our polite gesture by throwing the trial again and we lost BIG on perhaps the most solid case I have ever seen in my 15 years of involvement in such matters. I mean this was so solid we threw half our evidence away for fear of overpowering the jurors. But our loss was a foregone conclusion.
I have no doubt she is incompetent, corrupt and can be bought. If you plan to appear in Souder's court I recommend you first make a hefty donation to her reelection campaign

Prosecutor

Comment #: MD1270
Rating:3.1

Comments:
Judge Susan Souder continues to be an embarassment to the Circuit Court. How do you rule finger prints are inadmisable in court. The system is already backed up, now Judge Souder wants to back it up more by having every criminal convicted on strong fingerprint analogy appeal their case. This court is awash in day to day mistakes, does not run smooth and is understaffed. WAY to go Judge Souder. Your arrogence has not room in this court. Such a ruling is questioned by the century old technology that has been proven fingerprints are unique, one of a kind and no two people can have the same prints. She is the laughing stock of her profession.

Litigant

Comment #: MD1227
Rating:2.0

Comments:
Rude, abrupt and basically the most arrogant Judge I have ever seen. Was called a "prolific letter writer" because I apparently , in her opinion wrote to many letters to her regarding my case( 2 letters, each one page w/ documentation to verify my illness so to ask for postponement) When I did go before her, I was treated like a murderer even though I had my case transfered to Circuit from District. It was a traffic case. I have had in the past other cases in my youth that were far worse and was treated with more respect by other judges and given fair sentencing as deserved. I felt like I was being punished for taking up space in her more important cases and was given and extremely harsh sentence considering my crime. HAVING MY TRAFFIC CASE TRANSFERRED TO HER COURT.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: MD1226
Rating:4.2

Comments:
Does not like it if you know something she is not aware of legally. Rude , abrupt and generally hard on cases that come from district court, easy on those defendants who committed harsher crimes. If you come to her court without an attorney, be advised that you should think twice. Overall, she would be better suited for district court matters , but even then her arrogance would still be apparent.

Litigant

Comment #: MD1053
Rating:2.0

Comments:
One of Baltimore County's more unfit if not corrupt judges. She will go out of her way to sabotage your case if you are a pro se litigant, and acts extremely perturbed if you come to court prepared and actually did your legal homework. After grilling the petitioner, and finding no legal or factual basis to deny his petition for injunctive relief, she will simply rise from the bench, walk out of the courtroom, and enter a dismissal into the record. She actually claimed that the Circuit Court does not have the Jurisdiction to issue Injunctions, that such relief must come from the District Court.
Justice comes only with a price in her court, and the lesson is, "You have to pay to play."

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: MD2
Rating:8.8

Comments:
Very capable judge who does her homework and uses common sense in resolving complex factual and legal issues. Not afraid to made tough decisions.