Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 30 > Chapter 14 > Part 20 - Montana Consumer Debt Management Services Act

• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Consumer: means an individual who, singly or jointly with another individual, owes money to one or more creditors for personal, family, or household purposes. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• 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.
• Credit counseling service: means a person that provides or offers to provide debt management plan services to consumers for consideration. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• Credit counselor: means a person who is an employee or agent of a credit counseling service and who designs debt management plans and provides consumers with budget, basic financial planning, and consumer education services. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Debt management plan: means a written agreement under which a credit counseling service is to receive money from a consumer for the purpose of distributing that money to one or more creditors of the consumer as full or partial payment of the consumer's obligation to the creditor or creditors. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• Department: means the department of justice provided for in 2-15-2001. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• 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}
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• 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.
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• 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.
• Person: means an individual, sole proprietorship, firm, partnership, corporation, limited liability partnership or company, or other entity and includes a nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, 26 U. See Montana Code 30-14-2003
• Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201