MARVIN MANDEL, Governor                      1505

after the thirty day notice by registered mail has been sent to his
last known address.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That Section 156A of Article 66½ of the Annotated Code of Maryland
(1957 Edition and 1967 Replacement Volume), title "Motor Vehi-
cles," subtitle "Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund," be and it is
hereby repealed and re-enacted, with amendments, to read as fol-
lows:

156A.

As soon as practicable after assignment of any claim or action to
an insurer for investigation and defense, and if the Board finds that
the defendant was negligent and that his negligence was the proxi-
mate cause of the accident from which the action arises, the Board
shall negotiate with the plaintiff to obtain an offer of settlement of
the claim or action. If the Board finds that the plaintiff's offer is
reasonable, it shall submit the offer to the defendant for acceptance
or rejection. If defendant accepts the offer, the plaintiff shall proceed
to settlement provided in Section 161 herein. If defendant rejects the
offer, the Board shall cause a notice to be served upon the defendant
sent by registered mail to his last known address which shall state:
(1) That the insurer to which the claim or action was assigned
for defense shall withdraw from the claim or action without further
notice at the expiration of thirty days from the date of notice; (2)
That defendant has thirty days from the date of the notice within
which to engage counsel of his own selection to defend him in the
claim or action and that his counsel shall enter his appearance for
defendant within the thirty-day period or that defendant may enter
an appearance in his own behalf in the claim or action within the
said period; and (3) That, if the provisions of item (2) hereinabove
are not complied with, at any time after thirty days from the date
of the notice and without further notice, judgment may be entered
against him in the claim or action in the amount of the settlement
offer. After the expiration of any thirty-day period of notice to a
defendant, the Board may request the court to set the claim or
action for a hearing. At the hearing the court may proceed in a
summary manner, and if it is satisfied that this section or any other
applicable provisions of this subtitle have been complied with, it may
enter judgment against the defendant in favor of the plaintiff in
the amount of the settlement offer. The defendant has ten days in
which to appeal from the date of the entry of the judgment.

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall take effect
July 1, 1969.

Approved May 14, 1969.

CHAPTER 664
(House Bill 505)

AN ACT to repeal Sections 47(c-4) and 48 of Article 26 of the
Annotated Code of Maryland (1968 Supplement), title "Courts,"