Terms Used In Utah Code > Title 78B > Chapter 1 - Juries and Witnesses

• Administrator: includes "executor" when the subject matter justifies the use. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appointing authority: means the presiding officer or similar official of any court, board, commission, authority, department, agency, legislative body, or of any proceeding of any nature where a qualified interpreter is required under this part. See Utah Code 78B-1-201
• 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
• 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.
• Certificate of title: means a document issued by a jurisdiction to establish a record of ownership between an identified owner and the described vehicle, vessel, or outboard motor. See Utah Code 41-1a-102
• City: includes , depending on population, a metro township as defined in Section 10-3c-102. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• clerk of the court: means the person so designated by title and includes any deputy clerk. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• County executive: means :
       (7)(a) the county commission, in the county commission or expanded county commission form of government established under Title 17, Chapter 52a, Changing Forms of County Government;
       (7)(b) the county executive, in the county executive-council optional form of government authorized by Section 17-52a-203; or
       (7)(c) the county manager, in the council-manager optional form of government authorized by Section 17-52a-204. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Court: means trial court. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• deaf or hard of hearing parent: means a deaf or hard of hearing person who, because of sensory or environmental conditions, requires the assistance of a qualified interpreter or other special assistance for communicative purposes. See Utah Code 78B-1-201
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• 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.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• 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.
• Guardian: includes a person who:
       (14)(a) qualifies as a guardian of a minor or incapacitated person pursuant to testamentary or court appointment; or
       (14)(b) is appointed by a court to manage the estate of a minor or incapacitated person. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Highway: includes :
       (15)(a) a public bridge;
       (15)(b) a county way;
       (15)(c) a county road;
       (15)(d) a common road; and
       (15)(e) a state road. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• 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.
• Juror: A person who is on the jury.
• Jury: means a body of persons temporarily selected from the citizens of a particular county invested with the power to present and indict a person for a public offense or to try a question of fact. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Master jury list: means the source lists as prescribed by the Judicial Council under Section 78B-1-106. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Month: means a calendar month, unless otherwise expressed. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Mother: means a parent who is of the female sex. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• necessary services: include provisions of qualified interpreters, lip reading, pen and paper, typewriters, closed-circuit television with closed-caption translations, computers with print-out capability, and telecommunications devices for the deaf or similar devices. See Utah Code 78B-1-201
• Owner: means a person, other than a lienholder, holding title to a vehicle, vessel, or outboard motor whether or not the vehicle, vessel, or outboard motor is subject to a security interest. See Utah Code 41-1a-102
• Person: means :
       (24)(a) an individual;
       (24)(b) an association;
       (24)(c) an institution;
       (24)(d) a corporation;
       (24)(e) a company;
       (24)(f) a trust;
       (24)(g) a limited liability company;
       (24)(h) a partnership;
       (24)(i) a political subdivision;
       (24)(j) a government office, department, division, bureau, or other body of government; and
       (24)(k) any other organization or entity. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Prospective jury list: means the list of prospective jurors whose names are drawn at random from the master jury list and are determined to be qualified to serve as jurors. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Public necessity: means circumstances in which services performed by the prospective juror to members of the public in either a public or a private capacity cannot adequately be performed by others. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Qualified interpreter: means a sign language or oral interpreter as provided in Sections 78B-1-203 and 78B-1-206 of this part. See Utah Code 78B-1-201
• 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.
• Sex: means , in relation to an individual, the individual's biological sex, either male or female, at birth, according to distinct reproductive roles as manifested by:
       (34)(a) sex and reproductive organ anatomy;
       (34)(b) chromosomal makeup; and
       (34)(c) endogenous hormone profiles. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Supplemental appropriation: Budget authority provided in an appropriations act in addition to regular or continuing appropriations already provided. Supplemental appropriations generally are made to cover emergencies, such as disaster relief, or other needs deemed too urgent to be postponed until the enactment of next year's regular appropriations act.
• Swear: includes "affirm. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Town: includes , depending on population, a metro township as defined in Section 10-3c-102. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trial jury: means a body of persons selected from the citizens of a particular county before a court or officer of competent jurisdiction and sworn to try and determine by verdict a question of fact. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• Trial jury: A group of citizens who hear the evidence presented by both sides at trial and determine the facts in dispute. Federal criminal juries consist of 12 persons. Federal civil juries consist of six persons.
• Undue hardship: means circumstances in which the prospective juror would:
       (8)(a) be required to abandon a person under his or her personal care or incur the cost of substitute care which is unreasonable under the circumstances;
       (8)(b) suffer extreme physical hardship due to an illness, injury, or disability; or
       (8)(c) incur substantial costs or lost opportunities due to missing an event that was scheduled prior to the initial notice of potential jury service. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
• United States: includes each state, district, and territory of the United States of America. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Vehicle: includes a motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, off-highway vehicle, camper, park model recreational vehicle, manufactured home, and mobile home. See Utah Code 41-1a-102
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
• Victim advocate: work with prosecutors and assist the victims of a crime.
• Voir dire: The process by which judges and lawyers select a petit jury from among those eligible to serve, by questioning them to determine knowledge of the facts of the case and a willingness to decide the case only on the evidence presented in court. "Voir dire" is a phrase meaning "to speak the truth."
• Writing: includes :
       (48)(a) printing;
       (48)(b) handwriting; and
       (48)(c) information stored in an electronic or other medium if the information is retrievable in a perceivable format. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5