Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws > Chapter 8-8.4 - Abusive Litigation.

• Abusive litigation: means litigation where the following apply:

  (i)  The opposing parties have a current or former family or household member relationship or there has been a civil order or criminal conviction determining that one of the parties stalked or sexually assaulted the other party; and

  (ii)  The party who is filing, initiating, advancing, or continuing the litigation has been found by a court to have abused, stalked, or sexually assaulted the other party, pursuant to:

  (A)  A final protective order entered pursuant to Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.4-1

• 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.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• 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.
• Family or household member: means current or former intimate partners, spouses, former spouses, persons related by blood or marriage, persons who are presently residing together or who have resided together in the past three (3) years, and persons who have a child in common, regardless of whether they have been married or have lived together, or persons who are, or have been, in a dating or engagement relationship within the past year. See Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.4-1
• Foreign abuse prevention order: means any protection order issued by the court of any other state that contains provisions similar to relief provisions authorized under this chapter, or the Rhode Island rules of domestic relations procedure. See Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.4-1
• Interrogatories: Written questions asked by one party of an opposing party, who must answer them in writing under oath; a discovery device in a lawsuit.
• 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.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Litigation: means any kind of legal action or proceeding, including, but not limited to:

  (i)  A filing of a summons, complaint, or petition;

  (ii)  Serving a summons, complaint, or petition, regardless of whether it has been filed;

  (iii)  Filing a motion, notice of court date, or order to appear;

  (iv)  Serving a motion, notice of court date, or order to appear, regardless of whether it has been filed or scheduled;

  (v)  Filing a subpoena, subpoena duces tecum, interrogatories, request for production of documents, notice of deposition, or other discovery request; or

  (vi)  Serving a subpoena, subpoena duces tecum, interrogatories, request for production of documents, notice of deposition, or other discovery request. See Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.4-1

• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• 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.
• Perpetrator of abusive litigation: means a person who files, initiates, advances, or continues litigation in violation of an order restricting abusive litigation. See Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.4-1
• person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subpoena duces tecum: A command to a witness to produce documents.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• United States: include the several states and the territories of the United States. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-8