Terms Used In Louisiana Codes > Civil Code > BOOK III > Title XXIV > Chapter 4 - Liberative Prescription

• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• 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.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Applicable payee: means the spouse, the tutor or custodian of the child, the court-approved fiduciary of the spouse or child, or the department in a FITAP case or in a non-FITAP case in which the department is rendering services as designated by the court to be the payee. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Child: means a person under the age of eighteen or an eighteen year old who is a full-time student in a secondary school and who is dependent on either parent. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• 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.
• Criminal neglect of family: means the desertion or intentional nonsupport by a spouse of his or her spouse who is in destitute or necessitous circumstances or by either parent of his minor child who is in destitute or necessitous circumstances. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the Department of Children and Family Services. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Department: means the Louisiana Department of Health. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Department: means the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services. See Louisiana Children's Code 1281.3
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Diagnosis: means the art and science of determining the presence of disease in an individual and distinguishing one disease from another. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Discharge: means the full or conditional release from a treatment facility of any minor admitted or otherwise detained under this Title. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• 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:
• 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.
• Family psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner: means an individual who maintains the credentials as such and meets the requirements of a "psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner" as provided in Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• FITAP: means the Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• 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.
• 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}
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Mental Health Advocacy Service: means a service established by the state of Louisiana for the purpose of providing legal counsel and representation for persons with mental disabilities and for children and to ensure that their legal rights are protected. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• MHAS: means Mental Health Advocacy Service, as established by Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Mortgagor: The person who pledges property to a creditor as collateral for a loan and who receives the money.
• 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.
• 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.
• Patient: means any person detained and taken care of as a person with mental illness or person suffering from substance abuse. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Person with mental illness: means any person with a psychiatric disorder which has substantial adverse effects on his ability to function and who requires care and treatment. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• 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.
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• 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.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Respondent: means a person alleged to be mentally ill or suffering from substance abuse and for whom an application for commitment to a treatment facility has been filed. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Restraint: means the partial or total immobilization of any or all of the extremities or the torso by mechanical means for psychiatric indications. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Seclusion: means the involuntary confinement of a patient alone in a room, which the patient is physically prevented from leaving, for any period of time, except that seclusion does not include the placement of a patient alone in a room or other area for no more than thirty minutes at a time and no more than three hours in any twenty-four hour time period pursuant to behavior-shaping techniques such as "time-out". See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Spouse: shall mean a husband or wife. See Louisiana Children's Code 1351
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Substance abuse: means the condition of a person who uses narcotic, stimulant, depressant, soporific, tranquilizing, or hallucinogenic drugs or alcohol to the extent that it renders the person dangerous to himself or others or renders the person gravely disabled. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Treatment: means an active effort to accomplish an improvement in the mental condition or behavior of a patient or to prevent deterioration in his condition or behavior. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Treatment facility: means any public or private hospital, retreat, institution, mental health center, or facility licensed by the state of Louisiana in which any mentally ill minor or minor suffering from substance abuse is received or detained as a patient except a facility under the control or supervision of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections unless otherwise provided in Title VIII of this Code. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.