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Terms Used In 21 Guam Code Ann. § 48102

  • Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
As used in this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) action includes recoupment, counterclaim, suit in law or equity, and any other proceeding in which rights are determined;

(b) bona fide purchaser is a purchaser for a valuable consideration paid or parted with in the belief that the vendor had a right to sell, and without any suspicious circumstances to put him on inquiry;

(c) building or housing code includes any law, ordinance, rule, or regulation concerning fitness for habitation, use, operation, or occupancy;

(d) casualty is other insurable perils that include earthquake, wind, typhoon, and other natural disasters;

(e) common areas refers to areas shared by others in the same building such as a swimming pool, a playground, or a laundry facility;

(f) days are working days, and do not include weekends and federal and local Guam government holidays;

(g) dwelling unit means a structure or a part of a structure that is used as a home, residence, or sleeping place by one (1) or more persons who maintains a household;

(h) essential services refers to basic needs such as running water, electricity, gas, or hot water;

(i) good faith means a transaction done honestly and objectively with no deliberate intent to defraud the other party;

(j) landlord means the owner, lessor, or manager of the property or premises;

(k) normal wear and tear are the deterioration or depreciation in value by ordinary and reasonable use, but does not include items that are missing from the dwelling unit;

(l) owner means one (1) or more persons in whom is vested all or part of the legal title to the property or premises;
(m) premises means a dwelling unit and the structure of which is a part of the grounds, areas, and facilities promised for use by the tenant;

(n) rent means all payments to be made to or for the benefit of the landlord under the rental agreement;

(o) rental agreement means any agreement, written or not, concerning use and occupancy of a dwelling unit;

(p) security deposit means money deposited by or for the tenant with the landlord to be held by the landlord to:

(1) remedy tenant defaults for accidental or intentional damages resulting from failure to comply with the terms of this Act, for failure to pay rent due, or for failure to return all keys or other items furnished by the landlord at the termination of the rental agreement;

(2) clean the dwelling unit or have it cleaned at the termination of the rental agreement so as to place the condition of the dwelling unit in as fit a condition as that which the tenant entered into possession of the dwelling unit, less normal wear and tear; and

(3) compensate for damages caused by a tenant who wrongfully quits the dwelling unit;

(q) tenant means a person entitled under a rental agreement to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others;

(r) willful is defined as an intentional act.