Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes > Chapter 20 - Publication and Distribution of Bills, Joint Resolutions, Legislative Manual, Statutes, Journals, and Reports

• Active duty: means full-time duty as an enlisted member, or as a commissioned or warrant officer, in any branch of the armed forces. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:50
• Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Armed forces: means the United States Army, Army Reserve, Navy, Naval Reserve, Marine Corps, Marine Corps Reserve, Air Force, Air Force Reserve, Space Force, Coast Guard, Coast Guard Reserve, Army National Guard, and the Air National Guard. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:50
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• biennially: when applied to meetings and elections in towns, shall mean the biennial meetings and elections required by law to be holden in the month of November biennially, dating from the commencement of biennial elections in 1878; and the word "annual" when applied to meetings and elections in towns, shall mean the annual meetings and elections required by law to be holden in the month of March. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:7
• Carrier: means any person engaged in the transportation on the public roads or by water or by railroads in this state of goods or property in, to, or through this state, whether or not such transportation is for hire. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Cask: means a package certified by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the transportation of irradiated reactor fuel or high-level radioactive waste. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Commissioner: means the commissioner of the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Committee membership: Legislators are assigned to specific committees by their party. Seniority, regional balance, and political philosophy are the most prominent factors in the committee assignment process.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Emergency fire assistance: shall mean assistance during a fire emergency, as defined in paragraph I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 109:1
• Engrossed bill: The official copy of a bill or joint resolution passed by a chamber of the legislature.
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• fiduciary: shall include an executor, administrator, trustee under a will, trustee, conservator or guardian appointed by any court. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 113:1
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• fiduciary in military service: shall include fiduciaries who are members of the military forces of the United States or of any allied or associated power or who are detailed by proper authority for duty with such military forces. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 113:1
• Fire department personnel: shall mean regular full-time and call members of a municipal fire department but not including the members of a fire department auxiliary. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 109:1
• Fire emergency: shall mean actual or threatened bombing, shelling or other form of military action which in the judgment of the governor may result in a disastrous fire, and which has been proclaimed by the governor to be a fire emergency. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 109:1
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• governor and council: shall mean the governor with the advice and consent of the council. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:31-a
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• High-level radioactive waste: means :
  (a) The highly radioactive material resulting from the reprocessing of irradiated reactor fuel, including liquid waste produced directly in reprocessing and any solid material derived from such liquid waste that contains fission products in sufficient concentrations;
  (b) The highly radioactive material resulting from atomic energy defense activities; and
  (c) Any other highly radioactive material, greater than class C in accordance with Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, consistent with existing law, determines by rule requires permanent isolation. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. ^{Source: FDIC}
• Irradiated reactor fuel: means irradiated reactor fuel in accordance with Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• Joint committee: Committees including membership from both houses of teh legislature. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
• Joint resolution: A legislative measure which requires the approval of both chambers.
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• justice: when applied to a magistrate, shall mean a justice of a municipal court, or a justice of the peace having jurisdiction over the subject-matter. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:12
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• military: shall include the army, navy, marine corps, coast guard or other branches of the armed forces. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 113:1
• month: shall mean a calendar month, and the word "year" a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed; and the word "year" shall be equivalent to the expression "year of our Lord. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:8
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Municipality: shall mean any city, town, precinct, village or fire district. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 109:1
• national guard: shall mean and refer to the army national guard and the air national guard unless otherwise indicated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 110-B:1-a
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, state, municipality, political subdivision of a state, and any agency or instrumentality of the United States government or any other entity and includes any officer, agent, or employee of any of the above. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• person: may extend and be applied to bodies corporate and politic as well as to individuals. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:9
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• petition: when used in connection with the equity jurisdiction of the superior court, and referring to a document filed with the court, shall mean complaint, and "petitioner" shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• petitioner: shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• registered mail: when used in connection with the requirement for notice by mail shall mean either registered mail or certified mail. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:32-a
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• seal: shall include an impression of the official seal made upon the paper alone, as well as an impression thereof made by means of wax, or a wafer, affixed thereto. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:11
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Shipper: means any person who arranges for, provides for, solicits a carrier for, consigns to a carrier for, or contracts with a carrier for shipment or transport of goods or property. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 107-D:1
• state: when applied to different parts of the United States, may extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall include said district and territories. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:4
• State director of civil defense: shall mean the state director of the state civil defense agency, provided such an agency is created by the general court. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 109:1
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• sworn: when applied to public officers required by the constitution to take oaths therein prescribed, shall refer to those oaths; when applied to other officers it shall mean sworn to the faithful discharge of the duties of their offices before a justice of the peace, or other person authorized to administer official oaths in such cases. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:25
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. ^{Source: OCC}
• United States: shall include said district and territories. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:4
• Veteran: means any person who:
  (1) Served in the United States armed forces for more than 4 years and continues to serve; or
  (2) Has been discharged or released from duty in the United States armed forces with:
  (A) An honorable discharge; or
  (B) An uncharacterized discharge based on a service-connected injury, illness, or disability. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:50
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.