Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 80 > Chapter 5 - Agricultural Seed and Patented Plant Material

• Advertisement: means a representation, other than a representation on the label, that is disseminated by any means and that relates to seed governed by the provisions of this chapter. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Agricultural seeds: means the seeds of grass, forage, cereal, fiber crops, and any other kinds of seeds commonly recognized within this state as agricultural seeds. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Bulk: means not packaged in separate units. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Certifying agency: means :

  (a)an agency authorized under the laws of a state, territory, or possession of the United States to officially certify seed and that has standards and procedures to ensure the genetic purity and identity of the seed certified; or

  (b)an agency of a foreign country determined by the department to adhere to procedures and standards for seed certification that are comparable to those adhered to generally by the seed certifying agencies described in subsection (5)(a). See Montana Code 80-5-120

• Commercial purpose: means planting or propagating potatoes for the purpose of selling, trading, or otherwise exchanging for profit. See Montana Code 80-5-402
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conditioning: means drying, cleaning, scarifying, and other operations that could change the purity or germination of a seed and require the seed lot to be retested to determine labeling. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Controlling the pollination: means to use a method of hybridization that will produce pure seed that is at least 75% hybrid seed. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• 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.
• Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
• Customary: means according to usage. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Department: means the department of agriculture provided for in 2-15-3001. See Montana Code 80-5-402
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Dormant: means viable seeds, excluding hard seeds, that fail to germinate when provided the specified germination conditions for the seed in question. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• 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.
• Flower seeds: means seeds of herbaceous plants grown for their blooms, ornamental foliage, or other ornamental parts and that are commonly known and sold under the name of flower seeds in this state. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Genuine grower declaration: means a statement signed by the grower that indicates, for each lot of seed, the lot number, kind, variety, origin, weight, year of production, date, and destination of shipment. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Germination: means the emergence and development from the seed embryo as evidence of vitality when the seeds are subjected to the proper moisture and temperature conditions with proper aeration for the customary length of time for each specific kind of seed, as specified in the rules for seed testing adopted by the association of official seed analysts. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Grower: means the person responsible for planting and managing a crop on land where infringement of an intellectual property right is suspected to have occurred. See Montana Code 80-5-602
• Hard seeds: means seeds that remain hard at the end of the prescribed test period because they have not absorbed water because of an impermeable seed coat. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Indigenous seeds: means the seeds of those plants that are naturally adapted to an area where the intended use is for revegetation of disturbed sites. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Inert matter: means all matter that is not seed, including broken seeds, sterile florets, chaff, fungus bodies, and stones as determined by methods defined by the association of official seed analysts. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• 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.
• Kind: means one or more related species or subspecies that are known singly or collectively by one common name, such as corn, oats, alfalfa, and timothy. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Labeling: means a tag or other device, attached to or written, stamped, or printed on a container or accompanying a lot of bulk seeds, that purports to set forth the information required on the seed label under 80-5-123 and that may include any other information relating to the labeled seed. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Lot: means a definite quantity of seed identified by a lot number or other mark, every portion of which is uniform within recognized tolerances for the factors that appear in the labeling. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Mixture: means seed consisting of more than one kind, each in excess of 5% by weight of the whole. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Montana certified seed grower: means a member of an authorized Montana seed certifying agency who has consented to produce seed under the rules for certified classes of seed, with respect to the maintenance of genetic purity and variety identity, set forth by the establishing agency. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• 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, firm, partnership, corporation, or association. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Person: means an individual, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, or separate business or legal entity. See Montana Code 80-5-402
• Person: means an individual, firm, association, corporation, partnership, the state, a subdivision of the state, or any other form of business enterprise. See Montana Code 80-5-602
• potato seed: means all varieties of potato tubers, stems, and other plant parts of the herb plant known as Solanum tuberosum that are intended or used for seed purposes, planting, propagation, or reproduction. See Montana Code 80-5-402
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Prohibited noxious weed seeds: means the seeds of plant species that are designated as noxious weeds as defined in 7-22-2101. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• Protected plant: means any plant part or material, including but not limited to seeds and genetic traits, that is patented by the U. See Montana Code 80-5-602
• Pure live seed: means the product of the percentage of germination plus hard seed or dormant seed multiplied by the percentage of pure seed, divided by 100, with the result expressed as a whole number. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Pure seed: means seed exclusive of inert matter and all other seeds not of the seed being considered, as determined by methods defined by the association of official seed analysts. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Restricted weed seeds: means the seeds of any plant that may adversely affect agriculture or the environment and that are designated as restricted weed seeds under rules adopted by the department. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Seed conditioning plant: means a place of business, whether a permanent or portable facility, that conditions seeds. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Seed dealer: means a person who sells seeds. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Seed labeler: means a person affixing labels to seeds, with that person's name, address, and other information as required in 80-5-123. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Sell: means to offer for sale, expose for sale, have in possession for sale, exchange, barter, or trade. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Stop sale: means an administrative order provided by law that restrains the sale, use, disposition, and movement of a definite amount of seed. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Treated: means that seed has received an application of a substance or has been subjected to a process for which a claim is made. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Type: means a group of varieties so nearly similar that the individual varieties cannot be clearly differentiated except under special conditions. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Variety: means a subdivision of a kind that is:

  (a)distinct, in the sense that the variety can be differentiated by one or more identifiable morphological, physiological, or other characteristics from all other varieties known publicly;

  (b)uniform, in the sense that the variations in essential and distinctive characteristics are describable; and

  (c)stable, in the sense that the variety will remain unchanged in its essential and distinctive characteristics and its uniformity when reproduced or reconstituted as required by the different categories of varieties. See Montana Code 80-5-120

• Vegetable seeds: means seeds of those crops that are or may be grown in gardens or on truck farms and are or may be sold generally under the name of vegetable seeds or herbs. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Viable: means that seeds are capable of producing a normal seedling under optimum growing conditions after all forms of dormancy have been overcome, if present. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Weed seeds: means the seeds of all plants generally recognized as weeds within this state and includes noxious weed seeds. See Montana Code 80-5-120
• Writing: includes printing. See Montana Code 1-1-203