Terms Used In Maine Revised Statutes > Title 24-A > Chapter 16 - Producers, Adjusters and Consultants

• Accessory dwelling unit: means a self?contained dwelling unit located within, attached to or detached from a single-family dwelling unit located on the same parcel of land. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• Actuary: means a person who is a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1492
• Adjuster: means any individual who, as an independent contractor or as an employee of an independent contractor, or as an employee of another organization, for fee, commission or other compensation, investigates for, settles on behalf of and reports to an insurer, fraternal benefit society, workers' compensation self-insurer or insured relative to claims arising under the workers' compensation laws or other types of insurance contracts. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Adjuster trainee: means any individual with less than one year total experience handling loss claims under insurance contracts or the workers' compensation laws who is not licensed in this State as an adjuster and who is employed by and subject to the immediate personal supervision of an adjuster who is licensed in this State and who has been established in the business of adjusting for 3 years or more. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Affordable housing: means a decent, safe and sanitary dwelling, apartment or other living accommodation for a household whose income does not exceed 80% of the median income for the area as defined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development under the United States Housing Act of 1937, Public Law 75-412, 50 Stat. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Attorney-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
• automated claims adjudication system: means a preprogrammed computer system designed for the collection, data entry, calculation and final resolution of portable electronic device insurance claims that is used by an adjuster, insurance producer or supervised individual operating pursuant to this paragraph; complies with all claims payment requirements of the Maine Insurance Code; and is certified as compliant with this paragraph by a licensed adjuster that is an officer of a business entity licensed under this chapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• 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}
• Business entity: means a corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership or other legal entity. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Business entity: means a corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership or other legal entity. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Cable television company: means any person owning, controlling, operating, managing or leasing a cable television system within the State. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 2001
• 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.
• Comprehensive plan: means a document or interrelated documents containing the elements established under section 4326, subsections 1 to 4, including the strategies for an implementation program which are consistent with the goals and guidelines established under subchapter II. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• Consultant: means any individual who, for a fee, advises or offers to advise any person insured or seeking insurance or named or to be named as beneficiary, or having or to have any interest in or insured under any property and casualty or life and health insurance contract or annuity contract, existing or proposed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• consultant: as used in this subchapter , means both property and casualty consultants and life and health consultants as defined in section 1402. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1461
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Cooperative affordable housing corporation: means a domestic corporation that is organized under or elects to be governed by the provisions of this subchapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1742
• Cooperative property: means the real and personal property, including mobile and manufactured homes, in this State owned or leased by a cooperative affordable housing corporation for the primary purpose of residential use. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1742
• 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.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Department: means the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• Development: means a change in land use involving alteration of the land, water or vegetation, or the addition or alteration of structures or other construction not naturally occurring. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Employee cooperative: means a corporation which has duly elected to be governed by this subchapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1972
• 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.
• Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• 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.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Growth area: means an area that is designated in a municipality's or multimunicipal region's comprehensive plan as suitable for orderly residential, commercial or industrial development, or any combinations of those types of development, and into which most development projected over 10 years is directed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• health insurance: means insurance of human beings against bodily injury, disablement or death by accident or accidental means, or the expense thereof, or against disablement or expense resulting from sickness, and every insurance appertaining thereto, including provision for the mental and emotional welfare of human beings by defraying the costs of legal services only to the extent provided for in chapter 38. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 704
• Home rule authority: means the powers granted to municipalities under chapter 111; section 3001; and the Constitution of Maine, Article VIII, Part Second. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 2001
• Home state: means the District of Columbia and any state or territory of the United States that is the location of an insurance producer's principal place of residence or principal place of business, and in which that person is licensed to act as an insurance producer. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• in writing: include printing and other modes of making legible words. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
• 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}
• Insurance producer: means a person required to be licensed under subchapter II?A to sell, solicit or negotiate insurance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Insurance producer: means a person required to be licensed under the laws of this State to sell, solicit or negotiate insurance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Insurer: means a person engaged in the business of entering into contracts of insurance, as defined in section 3, and includes a health maintenance organization, fraternal benefit society, nonprofit hospital or medical service organization, viatical settlement provider or risk retention group. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Insurer: means a person engaged as principal and as indemnitor, surety or contractor in the business of entering into contracts of insurance who holds an existing certificate of authority to transact insurance in this State pursuant to section 404. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1492
• 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.
• Land use ordinance: means an ordinance or regulation of general application adopted by the municipal legislative body which controls, directs or delineates allowable uses of land and the standards for those uses. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• lands: includes lands and all tenements and hereditaments connected therewith, and all rights thereto and interests therein. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
• License: means a document issued by the superintendent authorizing a person to act as an insurance producer, adjuster or consultant for kinds of insurance specified in the document as authorized in this chapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• License: means a document issued by the superintendent authorizing a person to act as an insurance producer for the lines of authority specified in the document. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Life and health consultant: means a person licensed as a consultant to advise on life contracts, annuity contracts and health insurance contracts. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Limited line credit insurance: includes credit life, credit disability, credit property, credit unemployment, involuntary unemployment, mortgage life, mortgage guaranty, mortgage disability, guaranteed automobile protection insurance and any other form of insurance offered in connection with an extension of credit that is limited to partially or wholly extinguishing that credit obligation that the superintendent determines should be designated a form of limited line credit insurance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Limited line credit insurance producer: means a person who sells, solicits or negotiates one or more forms of limited line credit insurance coverage to individuals through a master, corporate, group or individual policy. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Limited lines insurance: means those lines of insurance defined as limited lines in section 1420?F, subsection 1 or any other line of insurance that the superintendent determines necessary to recognize for the purposes of complying with section 1420?G, subsection 5. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Limited lines producer: means a person authorized by the superintendent to sell, solicit or negotiate limited lines insurance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1420-A
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Member: means a person who owns a cooperative interest. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1742
• Member: means a natural person who has been accepted for membership in and owns a membership share issued by an employee cooperative. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1972
• Membership fee: means an initial payment made by a person to an employee cooperative as a condition to becoming a member. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 13 Sec. 1972
• MGA: means a person who negotiates and binds ceding reinsurance contracts on behalf of an insurer or manages all or part of the insurance business of an insurer, including the management of a separate division, department or underwriting office, and acts as a producer for the insurer, whether known as a managing general agent, manager or other similar term; and who, with or without the authority, either separately or together with affiliates, directly or indirectly, produces and underwrites an amount of gross direct written premium equal to or more than 5% of the policyholder surplus as reported in the last annual statement of the insurer in any one quarter of the year following the last annual statement and adjusts or pays claims in excess of an amount determined by the superintendent or negotiates reinsurance on behalf of the insurer, or both. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1492
• Moratorium: means a land use ordinance or other regulation approved by a municipal legislative body that, if necessary, may be adopted on an emergency basis and given immediate effect and that temporarily defers all development, or a type of development, by withholding any permit, authorization or approval necessary for the specified type or types of development. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 30-A Sec. 4301
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Multiple peril crop insurance adjuster: means a person who adjusts crop insurance claims under the federal crop insurance program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 24-A Sec. 1402
• Municipal officers: means :