Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Maryland

An online post can give general legal information and not specific legal advice. That being said, your husband's recommendation appears sound.

There is no legal cause of action for "hugging." To sue and get damages from someone they must have committed a legal "wrong" - either by negligence or as an intentional tort. It is rather difficult to imagine a scenario where a child's hug would be negligent. It is also difficult to imagine any court finding a parent legally obliged to pay for any accidental injury caused by a minor's hugging.

Again this is not legal advice, but general information that may help. You remain free to seek legal advice by consulting attorneys of your choosing - this post does not create any attorney/client relationship.

You have no cause of action against anyone but the young man. The only possible source of recovery might be if he was covered by a homeowner's insurance policy at the time and this took place in their home or somewhere else where he may have been covered by the policy. You didn't specify when this happened, but if you've gone a "few years" with no treatment even though your back has been bothering you all this time, that undermines the validity of your claim, both as to extent of injury and causation. You could sue him before he reaches 21, but if he has no insurance coverage and no real assets, I doubt it would be worth the time and expense. A personal injury attorney will not charge you for a consultation, but based on the facts you've presented it is going to be hard to find someone to take the case on a contingent fee basis.