Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws > Chapter 6-13.1 - Deceptive Trade Practices

• Agreement: means a written contractual agreement between the merchant and the third-party delivery service. See Rhode Island General Laws 6-58-1
• 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.
• Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• 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.
• Credit bureau: means any entity or person who or that, for monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling or evaluating consumer credit information or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing credit reports to third parties;

  (2)(i)  "Credit report" means any written, oral, or other communication of any information by a credit bureau bearing on a consumer's credit worthiness, credit standing, or credit capacity, that is used or expected to be used or collected in whole or in part for the purpose of serving as a factor in establishing the consumer's eligibility for:

  (A)  Credit or insurance to be used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes;

  (B)  Employment purposes; or

  (C)  Other purposes authorized under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, Rhode Island General Laws 6-13.1-20

• Credit bureau: An agency that collects individual credit information and sells it for a fee to creditors so they can make a decision on granting loans. Typical clients include banks, mortgage lenders, credit card companies, and other financing companies. (Also commonly referred to as consumer-reporting agency or credit-reporting agency.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Credit report: A detailed report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit bureau and used by a lender in determining a loan applicant's creditworthiness. ^{Source: OCC}
• Customer: means the person, business, or other entity that places an order for merchant products through the marketplace. See Rhode Island General Laws 6-58-1
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Documentary material: means the original or a copy of any book, record, report, memorandum, paper, communication, tabulation, map, chart, photograph, mechanical transcription, or other tangible document or recording wherever situated. See Rhode Island General Laws 6-13.1-1
• 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 Credit Reporting Act: A federal law, established in 1971 and revised in 1997, that gives consumers the right to see their credit records and correct any mistakes. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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
• 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.
• Legal tender: coins, dollar bills, or other currency issued by a government as official money. ^{Source: U.S. Mint}
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• oath: includes affirmation; the word "sworn" includes affirmed; and the word "engaged" includes either sworn or affirmed. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-11
• 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 natural persons, corporations, trusts, partnerships, incorporated or unincorporated associations, and any other legal entity. See Rhode Island General Laws 6-13.1-1
• real estate: may be construed to include lands, tenements, and hereditaments and rights thereto and interests therein. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-10
• Rebate: means the return of a payment or a partial payment that serves as a discount or reduction in price. See Rhode Island General Laws 6-13.1-1
• 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.
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• 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.
• Unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices: means any one or more of the following:

  (i)  Passing off goods or services as those of another;

  (ii)  Causing likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding as to the source, sponsorship, approval, or certification of goods or services;

  (iii)  Causing likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding as to affiliation, connection, or association with, or certification by, another;

  (iv)  Using deceptive representations or designations of geographic origin in connection with goods or services;

  (v)  Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has a sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection that he or she does not have;

  (vi)  Representing that goods are original or new if they are deteriorated, altered, reconditioned, reclaimed, used, or secondhand; and if household goods have been repaired or reconditioned, without conspicuously noting the defect that necessitated the repair on the tag that contains the cost to the consumer of the goods;

  (vii)  Representing that goods or services are of a particular standard, quality, or grade, or that goods are of a particular style or model, if they are of another;

  (viii)  Disparaging the goods, services, or business of another by false or misleading representation of fact;

  (ix)  Advertising goods or services with intent not to sell them as advertised;

  (x)  Advertising goods or services with intent not to supply reasonably expectable public demand, unless the advertisement discloses a limitation of quantity;

  (xi)  Making false or misleading statements of fact concerning the reasons for, existence of, or amounts of price reductions;

  (xii)  Engaging in any other conduct that similarly creates a likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding;

  (xiii)  Engaging in any act or practice that is unfair or deceptive to the consumer;

  (xiv)  Using any other methods, acts, or practices that mislead or deceive members of the public in a material respect;

  (xv)  Advertising any brand name goods for sale and then selling substituted brand names in their place;

  (xvi)  Failure to include the brand name and or manufacturer of goods in any advertisement of the goods for sale, and, if the goods are used or secondhand, failure to include the information in the advertisement;

  (xvii)  Advertising claims concerning safety, performance, and comparative price unless the advertiser, upon request by any person, the consumer council, or the attorney general, makes available documentation substantiating the validity of the claim;

  (xviii)  Representing that work has been performed on or parts replaced in goods when the work was not in fact performed or the parts not in fact replaced; or

  (xix)  Failing to separately state the amount charged for labor and the amount charged for services when requested by the purchaser as provided for in § 44-18-12(b)(3). See Rhode Island General Laws 6-13.1-1

• United States: include the several states and the territories of the United States. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-8