Terms Used In New York Laws > Domestic Relations > Article 7 - Adoption

• Academic year: shall mean the regular school year beginning July first and ending June thirtieth. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• adoptor: shall mean a person adopting and "adoptive child" or "adoptee" shall mean a person adopted. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• 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.
• 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.
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• 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.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• 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
• Arraignment: A proceeding in which an individual who is accused of committing a crime is brought into court, told of the charges, and asked to plead guilty or not guilty.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• art merchant: includes an auctioneer who sells such works at public auction, and except in the case of multiples, includes persons, not otherwise defined or treated as art merchants herein, who are consignors or principals of auctioneers. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Artist: means the creator of a work of fine art or, in the case of multiples, the person who conceived or created the image which is contained in or which constitutes the master from which the individual print was made. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Authorized agency: shall mean an authorized agency as defined in the social services law and, for the purpose of this article, shall include such corporations incorporated or organized under the laws of this state as may be specifically authorized by their certificates of incorporation to receive children for purposes of adoption. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• authorship: refers to the creator of a work of fine art or multiple or to the period, culture, source or origin, as the case may be, with which the creation of such work is identified in the description of the work. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Board: shall mean the board of trustees of the New York state higher education services corporation. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• Certificate of authenticity: means a written statement by an art merchant confirming, approving or attesting to the authorship of a work of fine art or multiple, which is capable of being used to the advantage or disadvantage of some person. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Child witness: means a person fourteen years old or less who is or will be called to testify in a criminal proceeding, other than a grand jury proceeding, concerning an offense defined in Article one hundred thirty of the penal law or section 255. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 65.00
• Commission: shall mean the empire state plaza art commission created by this article. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 4.03
• commissioner: means the head of the office for people with developmental disabilities. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 13.03
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conservation: means acts taken to correct deterioration and alteration and acts taken to prevent, stop or retard deterioration. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• 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.
• Corporation: shall mean the New York state higher education services corporation. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• Counterfeit: means a work of fine art or multiple made, altered or copied, with or without intent to deceive, in such manner that it appears or is claimed to have an authorship which it does not in fact possess. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Craft: means a functional or non-functional work individually designed, and crafted by hand, in any medium including but not limited to textile, tile, paper, clay, glass, fiber, wood, metal or plastic; provided, however, that if produced in multiples, craft shall not include works mass produced or produced in other than a limited edition. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Creditors: means "creditor" as defined in paragraph thirteen of subsection (b) of section 1--201 of the uniform commercial code. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• 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.
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Empire state plaza: shall mean the Governor Nelson A. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 4.03
• 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.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• 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.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Executrix: The female counterpart of an executor. See also
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Federal student aid programs: shall mean the programs of the United States government making financial aid available to pay for the cost of attending post-secondary institutions and established under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of nineteen hundred sixty-five, as amended, or any successor statute. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fine art: means a painting, sculpture, drawing, or work of graphic art, and print, but not multiples. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• 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.
• Fixed Rate: Having a "fixed" rate means that the APR doesn't change based on fluctuations of some external rate (such as the "Prime Rate"). In other words, a fixed rate is a rate that is not a variable rate. A fixed APR can change over time, in several circumstances:
  • You are late making a payment or commit some other default, triggering an increase to a penalty rate
  • The bank changes the terms of your account and you do not reject the change.
  • The rate expires (if the rate was fixed for only a certain period of time).
• Forbearance: A means of handling a delinquent loan. A
• Forgery: The fraudulent signing or alteration of another's name to an instrument such as a deed, mortgage, or check. The intent of the forgery is to deceive or defraud. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grace period: The number of days you'll have to pay your bill for purchases in full without triggering a finance charge. ^{Source: Federal Reserve}
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
• Guarantor: A party who agrees to be responsible for the payment of another party's debts should that party default. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Hudson river valley: means the Hudson river and adjacent areas between the Adirondack Mountains and the tip of Manhattan Island in the city of New York. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 10.03
• Impeachment: (1) The process of calling something into question, as in "impeaching the testimony of a witness." (2) The constitutional process whereby the House of Representatives may "impeach" (accuse of misconduct) high officers of the federal government for trial in the Senate.
• 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}
• 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.
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Institute: means the Institute for the Hudson River Collection created by this article. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 10.03
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Irrevocable trust: A trust arrangement that cannot be revoked, rescinded, or repealed by the grantor.
• Judge: shall mean a judge of the family court of any county in the state. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• 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.
• Lawful custody: shall mean a custody (a) specifically authorized by statute or (b) pursuant to judgment, decree or order of a court or (c) otherwise authorized by law. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• 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}
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• Lend: shall include one or more of the following services: the origination, disbursement, servicing, and/or collection of any student or parent education loan made by or on behalf of a lending institution a government entity, or an institution of higher education for the purpose of paying for higher education expenses as well as serving as a secondary market for these loans. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Limited edition: means works of art produced from a master, all of which are the same image and bear numbers or other markings to denote the limited production thereof to a stated maximum number of multiples, or are otherwise held out as limited to a maximum number of multiples. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Master: when used alone is used in lieu of and means the same as such things as printing plate, stone, block, screen, photographic negative or other like material which contains an image used to produce visual art objects in multiples, or in the case of sculptures, a mold, model, cast, form or other prototype, other than from glass, which additional multiples of sculpture are produced, fabricated or carved. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Minority leader: See Floor Leaders
• Mistrial: An invalid trial, caused by fundamental error. When a mistrial is declared, the trial must start again from the selection of the jury.
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• multiples: means prints, photographs, positive or negative, sculpture and similar art objects produced in more than one copy and sold, offered for sale or consigned in, into or from this state for an amount in excess of one hundred dollars exclusive of any frame or in the case of sculpture, an amount in excess of fifteen hundred dollars. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• noxious weeds: means any living stage (including but not limited to, seeds and reproductive parts) of any parasitic or other plant of a kind, or subdivision of a kind, which is of foreign origin, is new to or not widely prevalent in this state, and can directly or indirectly injure crops, other useful plants, livestock, or poultry or other interests of agriculture, including irrigation. See N.Y. Agriculture and Markets Law 161
• nursery: means the grounds and premises, private or public, on or in which nursery stock is propagated, grown or cultivated for the purpose of distribution or selling the same as a business and shall include grounds or premises owned, leased or managed by the state or any agency of the state government, and the owner or operator of such business shall be a "nursery grower"; provided, however, that the term "nursery grower" shall not include persons engaged in the part-time production of plant products not sold in the regular channels of business. See N.Y. Agriculture and Markets Law 161
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• 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.
• office: means the office for people with developmental disabilities. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 13.03
• On consignment: means that no title to, estate in, or right to possession of, the work of fine art or multiple that is superior to that of the consignor vests in the consignee, notwithstanding the consignee's power or authority to transfer or convey all the right, title and interest of the consignor, in and to such work, to a third person. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Oral argument: An opportunity for lawyers to summarize their position before the court and also to answer the judges' questions.
• 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: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association or other group, however organized. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Petty offense: A federal misdemeanor punishable by six months or less in prison. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• President: shall mean the president of the corporation. See N.Y. Education Law 651
• Private law: A private bill enacted into law. Private laws have restricted applicability, often addressing immigration and naturalization issues affecting individuals.
• Private-placement adoption: shall mean any adoption other than that of a minor who has been placed for adoption by an authorized agency. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Probation officers: Screen applicants for pretrial release and monitor convicted offenders released under court supervision.
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public defender: Represent defendants who can't afford an attorney in criminal matters.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• 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.
• Reproduction: means a copy, in any medium, of a work of fine art, that is displayed or published under circumstances that, reasonably construed, evinces an intent that it be taken as a representation of a work of fine art as created by the artist. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Reproduction right: means a right to reproduce, prepare derivative works of, distribute copies of, publicly perform or publicly display a work of fine art. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Sculpture: means a three-dimensional fine art object produced, fabricated or carved in multiple from a mold, model, cast, form or other prototype, other than from glass, sold, offered for sale or consigned in, into or from this state for an amount in excess of fifteen hundred dollars. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Signed: means autographed by the artist's own hand, and not by mechanical means of reproduction, after the multiple was produced, whether or not the master was signed or unsigned. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• soil: means the commonly accepted medium or other medium in which plants are grown and which is or may be capable of harboring or transmitting insect pests and plant diseases. See N.Y. Agriculture and Markets Law 161
• State agency: shall mean any state board, body, bureau, commission, council, department, public authority, public corporation, division, office, or other governmental entity performing a governmental or proprietary function for the state, but shall not include the legislature. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 4.03
• State agency: means any state board, body, bureau, commission, council, department, public authority, public corporation, division, office or other governmental entity performing a governmental or proprietary function for the state. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 10.03
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Successor in interest: shall mean a "personal representative" "testamentary beneficiary" trustee or beneficiary of a "lifetime trust" or an "heir" (including heirs who acquire the work of fine art, craft or print from the artist or craftsperson or from another heir or beneficiary of the artist or craftsperson), which terms shall have the same meanings as set forth in the estates, powers and trusts law. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Surrogate: shall mean the surrogate of any county in the state and any other judicial officer while acting in the capacity of surrogate. See N.Y. Domestic Relations Law 109
• Testator: A male person who leaves a will at death.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimonial room: means any room, separate and apart from the courtroom, which is furnished comfortably and less formally than a courtroom and from which the testimony of a vulnerable child witness can be transmitted to the courtroom by means of live, two-way closed-circuit television. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 65.00
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• 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.
• 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}
• Variable Rate: Having a "variable" rate means that the APR changes from time to time based on fluctuations in an external rate, normally the Prime Rate. This external rate is known as the "index." If the index changes, the variable rate normally changes. Also see Fixed Rate.
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
• Vulnerable child witness: means a child witness whom a court has declared to be vulnerable. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 65.00
• Written instrument: means a written or printed agreement, bill of sale, invoice, certificate of authenticity, catalogue or any other written or printed note or memorandum or label describing the work of fine art or multiple which is to be sold, exchanged or consigned by an art merchant. See N.Y. Arts and Cultural Affairs Law 11.01