Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws > Chapter 27-35 - Insurance Holding Company Systems

• 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.
• 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.
• Civil forfeiture: The loss of ownership of property used to conduct illegal activity.
• commissioner: means the definition prescribed by § 42-14-5. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• 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.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Enterprise risk: means any activity, circumstance, event or series of events involving one or more affiliates of an insurer that, if not remedied promptly, is likely to have a material adverse effect upon the financial condition or liquidity of the insurer or its insurance holding company system as a whole, including, but not limited to, anything that would cause the insurer's risk-based capital to fall into company action level as set forth in chapters 4. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• 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.
• 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.
• Group capital calculation instructions: means the group capital calculation instructions, as adopted by the NAIC and as amended by the NAIC from time to time, in accordance with the procedures adopted by the NAIC. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• Group-wide supervisor: means the regulatory official authorized to engage in conducting and coordinating group-wide supervision activities who is determined or acknowledged by the commissioner under Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• in writing: include printing, engraving, lithographing, and photo-lithographing, and all other representations of words in letters of the usual form. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-16
• insurance holding company system: consists of two (2) or more affiliated persons, one or more of which is an insurer. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• insurer: means any person or persons or corporation, partnership, or company authorized by the laws of this state to transact the business of insurance in this state, including entities organized or authorized to transact business in this state pursuant to chapters 19, 20, 20. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• Internationally active insurance group: means an insurance holding company system that:

  (i)  Includes an insurer registered under § 27-35-3; and

  (ii)  Meets the following criteria:

  (A)  Premiums written in at least three (3) countries;

  (B)  The percentage of gross premiums written outside the United States is at least ten percent (10%) of the insurance holding company system's total gross written premiums; and

  (C)  Based on a three-year (3) rolling average, the total assets of the insurance holding company system are at least fifty billion dollars ($50,000,000,000) or the total gross written premiums of the insurance holding company system are at least ten billion dollars ($10,000,000,000). See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1

• 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.
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• NAIC: means the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• NAIC liquidity stress test framework: is a separate NAIC publication that includes a history of the NAIC's development of regulatory liquidity stress testing, the scope criteria applicable for a specific data year, and the liquidity stress test instructions and reporting templates for a specific data year, such scope criteria, instructions and reporting template being as adopted by the NAIC and as amended by the NAIC from time to time, in accordance with the procedures adopted by the NAIC. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• 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: is a n individual, a corporation, a limited liability company, a partnership, an association, a joint stock company, a trust, an unincorporated organization, or any similar entity or any combination of the foregoing acting in concert, but shall not include any joint venture partnership exclusively engaged in owning, managing, leasing or developing real or tangible personal property. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Sequester: To separate. Sometimes juries are sequestered from outside influences during their deliberations.
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• 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: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• United States: include the several states and the territories of the United States. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-8
• voting security: shall include any security convertible into or evidencing a right to acquire a voting security. See Rhode Island General Laws 27-35-1
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.