Maryland · Trust Accounting
What Maryland attorneys must do to keep client trust funds compliant — the governing rule, how often you must reconcile, and how long records must be kept.
Md. Rule 19-301.15 (Safekeeping Property), with Maryland Rules Title 19 Chapter 400: Rule 19-407 (recordkeeping), 19-409 (IOLTA), 19-411 (approved institutions)
Monthly (Md. Rule 19-407)
5 years
Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland, Office of Bar Counsel
Maryland IOLTA Program (Maryland Legal Services Corporation)
Required — banks must notify the regulator
Source: Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland, Office of Bar Counsel . Rules change — always confirm against the current text before relying on it.
Maryland's stated reconciliation requirement is: Monthly (Md. Rule 19-407). A three-way reconciliation compares three totals that must all agree. If they do not, the difference has to be found and resolved before the reconciliation is complete.
Bank statement balance, adjusted for outstanding checks and deposits in transit.
Your internal trust account register as of the same date.
The total of every individual client ledger balance on that date.
For a full walkthrough of the procedure, common violations, and what examiners look for, see our IOLTA compliance guide.
Maryland requires trust account records to be retained for 5 years. In practice that means keeping:
IOLTA Guard automates three-way reconciliation, blocks negative client ledgers, and keeps the audit trail Maryland attorneys are expected to maintain.