Terms Used In New York Laws > Labor > Article 7 - General Provisions

• Adjusted gross estate: The gross estate, less funeral expenses, expenses of estate administration during probate, debts of the estate, and casualty losses suffered during estate administration.
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• affiliate: means an entity which directly, indirectly or constructively controls a vendor of such enumerated services or is controlled by such vendor or is under the control of, along with such vendor, a common parent. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Affiliated livery vehicle: means a for-hire motor vehicle with a seating capacity of up to six persons, including the driver, other than a black car or luxury limousine, that is authorized and licensed by the taxi and limousine commission of a city of one million or more to be dispatched by a base station located in such a city and regulated by such taxi and limousine commission; and the charges for service provided by an affiliated livery vehicle are on the basis of flat rate, time, mileage, or zones and not on a garage to garage basis. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• 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.
• 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.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Article: means a prose composition, including commentaries, reviews, editorials, op-eds, letters to the editor, and reader comments on articles. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• 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.
• 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}
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• Bus: means any motor vehicle with a seating capacity of at least fifteen persons, excluding the driver, that does not otherwise qualify as a limousine. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Cap amount: means three hundred percent of the annualized average daily newsstand price of the three newspapers with the largest total paid national daily circulation. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• Codicil: An addition, change, or supplement to a will executed with the same formalities required for the will itself.
• Common disaster: A sudden and extraordinary misfortune that brings about the simultaneous or near-simultaneous deaths of two or more associated persons, such as husband and wife.
• 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.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• 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.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• diesel motor fuel: means diesel motor fuel as defined in subdivision fourteen of section two hundred eighty-two of this chapter. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• 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:
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Donee: The recipient of a gift.
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Dower: A widow
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• 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.
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• executor: means the executor or administrator of the estate of the decedent, or, if there is no executor or administrator appointed, qualified and acting, then any person or entity in actual or constructive possession of any property of the decedent. See N.Y. Tax Law 951-A
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• farming: includes agriculture, floriculture, horticulture, aquaculture and silviculture; stock, dairy, poultry, fruit, fur bearing animal, graping, truck and tree farming; ranching; operating nurseries, greenhouses, vineyard trellises or other similar structures used primarily for the raising of agricultural, horticultural, vinicultural, viticultural, floricultural or silvicultural commodities; operating orchards; raising, growing and harvesting crops, livestock and livestock products, as defined in subdivision two of § 301 of the agriculture and markets law; and raising, growing and harvesting woodland products, including, but not limited to, timber, logs, lumber, pulpwood, posts and firewood. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fixed Rate: Having a "fixed" rate means that the APR doesn't change based on fluctuations of some external rate (such as the "Prime Rate"). In other words, a fixed rate is a rate that is not a variable rate. A fixed APR can change over time, in several circumstances:
  • You are late making a payment or commit some other default, triggering an increase to a penalty rate
  • The bank changes the terms of your account and you do not reject the change.
  • The rate expires (if the rate was fixed for only a certain period of time).
• Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• General news: means matters of general interest and reports of current events. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grace period: The number of days you'll have to pay your bill for purchases in full without triggering a finance charge. ^{Source: Federal Reserve}
• Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
• Gross estate: The total fair market value of all property and property interests, real and personal, tangible and intangible, of which a decedent had beneficial ownership at the time of death before subtractions for deductions, debts, administrative expenses, and casualty losses suffered during estate administration.
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Home service provider: shall mean a facilities-based carrier or reseller as defined in subparagraph (iv) of this paragraph, with which the mobile telecommunications customer contracts for the provision of mobile telecommunications service. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• hotel: includes an apartment hotel, a motel, boarding house or club, whether or not meals are served. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Intangible property: Property that has no intrinsic value, but is merely the evidence of value such as stock certificates, bonds, and promissory notes.
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Joint committee: Committees including membership from both houses of teh legislature. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
• Joint resolution: A legislative measure which requires the approval of both chambers.
• 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.
• Law of descent: The State statutes that specify how a deceased person
• 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}
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• Legatee: A beneficiary of a decedent
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Licensed service area: shall mean the geographic area in which a home service provider is authorized by law or contract to provide mobile telecommunications service to a mobile telecommunications customer. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
• limited liability company: means a domestic limited liability company or a foreign limited liability company, as defined in § 102 of the limited liability company law, a limited liability investment company formed pursuant to § 507 of the banking law, or a limited liability trust company formed pursuant to § 102-a of the banking law. See N.Y. Tax Law 601
• Lineal descendant: Direct descendant of the same ancestors.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Marital deduction: The deduction(s) that can be taken in the determination of gift and estate tax liabilities because of the existence of a marriage or marital relationship.
• Mobile telecommunications customer: shall mean either (A) a person or entity that contracts with a home service provider for mobile telecommunications services; or (B) if the end user of mobile telecommunications services is not the contracting party, the end user of the mobile telecommunications service, but this clause (B) applies only for the purpose of determining the place of primary use. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Mobile telecommunications service: shall mean commercial mobile radio service. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
• Mortgagor: The person who pledges property to a creditor as collateral for a loan and who receives the money.
• motor fuel: means motor fuel as defined in subdivision two of section two hundred eighty-two of this chapter. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• News content: means the articles, photographs, and video and audio material concerning general news or specialized news and does not include listings, advertisements, catalogs, compilations, databases, or the like. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Non-news content: means any information other than news content. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• 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.
• partnership: shall include , unless a different meaning is clearly required, a subchapter K limited liability company. See N.Y. Tax Law 601
• person: includes an individual, a trustee, a corporation, an association, a joint-stock company, a partnership, a limited liability company and a bank. See N.Y. Tax Law 951-A
• person: includes an individual, partnership, limited liability company, society, association, joint stock company, corporation, estate, receiver, trustee, assignee, referee, and any other person acting in a fiduciary or representative capacity, whether appointed by a court or otherwise, and any combination of the foregoing. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• persons interested in the estate: shall include all persons who may be entitled to receive or who have received any property or interest which is required to be included in the gross estate of a decedent, or any benefit whatsoever with respect to any such property or interest, whether under a will, or intestacy, or by reason of any of the transfers, trusts, estates, interests, rights, powers and relinquishments of powers which are required to be included in the gross estate. See N.Y. Tax Law 951-A
• Place of primary use: shall mean the street address representative of where a mobile telecommunications customer's use of the mobile telecommunications service primarily occurs, and must be: (i) the residential street address or the primary business street address of the mobile telecommunications customer and (ii) within the licensed service area of the home service provider. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
• Prepaid mobile calling service: means the right to use a commercial mobile radio service, whether or not sold with other property or services, that must be paid for in advance and is sold for use over a specified period of time or in predetermined units or dollars that decline with use in a known amount, whether or not that right is represented by or includes the transfer to the purchaser of an item of tangible personal property. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Prepaid telephone calling service: means the right to exclusively purchase telecommunication services, that must be paid for in advance and enable the origination of one or more intrastate, interstate or international telephone calls using an access number (such as a toll free network access number) and/or authorization code, whether manually or electronically dialed, for which payment to a vendor must be made in advance, whether or not that right is represented by the transfer by the vendor to the purchaser of an item of tangible personal property. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Probate: Proving a will
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• 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.
• Remainderman: One entitled to the remainder of an estate after a particular reserved right or interest, such as a life tenancy, has expired.
• Reseller: shall mean a provider who purchases telecommunications service from another telecommunications service provider and then resells, uses as a component part of, or integrates the purchased services into a mobile telecommunications service. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Right of survivorship: The ownership rights that result in the acquisition of title to property by reason of having survived other co-owners.
• Right to the use or possession: includes the rights of a room remarketer as described in paragraph eight of this subdivision. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Right to use or possess: includes the rights of a room remarketer as described in paragraph eight of this subdivision. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Serving carrier: shall mean a facilities-based carrier providing mobile telecommunications service to a mobile telecommunications customer outside the home service provider's or reseller's licensed service area. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• 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.
• Specialized news: means matters of a specialized interest, such as legal, mercantile, financial, theatrical, entertainment news, political, religious, or sporting matters. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• tangible personal property: means corporeal personal property, including money held for numismatic purposes, and does not include deposits in banks, mortgages, debts, receivables, shares of stock, bonds, notes, credits, evidences of an interest in property, evidences of debt, or choses in action generally. See N.Y. Tax Law 951-A
• taxpayer: means the estate of the decedent and any other person subject to or liable for any tax imposed by this article. See N.Y. Tax Law 951-A
• Tenancy by the entirety: A type of joint tenancy between husband and wife that is recognized in some States. Neither party can sever the joint tenancy relationship; when a spouse dies, the survivor acquires full title to the property.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Variable Rate: Having a "variable" rate means that the APR changes from time to time based on fluctuations in an external rate, normally the Prime Rate. This external rate is known as the "index." If the index changes, the variable rate normally changes. Also see Fixed Rate.
• vendor: includes :
  
  (A) A person making sales of tangible personal property or services, the receipts from which are taxed by this article;
  
  (B) A person maintaining a place of business in the state and making sales, whether at such place of business or elsewhere, to persons within the state of tangible personal property or services, the use of which is taxed by this article;
  
  (C) A person who solicits business either:
  
  (I) by employees, independent contractors, agents or other representatives; or
  
  (II) by distribution of catalogs or other advertising matter, without regard to whether such distribution is the result of regular or systematic solicitation, if such person has some additional connection with the state which satisfies the nexus requirement of the United States constitution; and by reason thereof makes sales to persons within the state of tangible personal property or services, the use of which is taxed by this article;
  
  (D) A person who makes sales of tangible personal property or services, the use of which is taxed by this article, and who regularly or systematically delivers such property or services in this state by means other than the United States mail or common carrier;
  
  (E) A person who regularly or systematically solicits business in this state by the distribution, without regard to the location from which such distribution originated, of catalogs, advertising flyers or letters, or by any other means of solicitation of business, to persons in this state and by reason thereof makes sales to persons within the state of tangible personal property, the use of which is taxed by this article, if such solicitation satisfies the nexus requirement of the United States constitution;
  
  (F) A person making sales of tangible personal property, the use of which is taxed by this article, where such person retains an ownership interest in such property and where such property is brought into this state by the person to whom such property is sold and the person to whom such property is sold becomes or is a resident or uses such property in any manner in carrying on in this state any employment, trade, business or profession;
  
  (G) Any other person making sales to persons within the state of tangible personal property or services, the use of which is taxed by this article, who may be authorized by the commissioner of taxation and finance to collect such tax by part IV of this article;
  
  (H) The state of New York, any of its agencies, instrumentalities, public corporations (including a public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another state or Canada) or political subdivisions when such entity sells services or property of a kind ordinarily sold by private persons; and
  
  (I) A seller of tangible personal property or services, the use of which is taxed by this article if either (I) an affiliated person that is a vendor as otherwise defined in this paragraph uses in the state trademarks, service marks, or trade names that are the same as those the seller uses; or (II) an affiliated person engages in activities in the state that inure to the benefit of the seller, in its development or maintenance of a market for its goods or services in the state, to the extent that those activities of the affiliate are sufficient to satisfy the nexus requirement of the United States constitution. See N.Y. Tax Law 1101
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.