Terms Used In Tennessee Code > Title 2 > Chapter 12 > Part 1 - General Provisions

• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• advertising: means every kind of conveying to the public notice of sale or notice of intention to conduct a sale, whether by word of mouth, newspaper advertising, magazine advertisement, handbill, written notice, printed notice, printed display, billboard display, poster, radio announcement, and, any and all means including oral, written or printed. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• 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.
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Alternate delegate: means an individual elected as an alternate delegate as provided by this chapter. See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• 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.
• Annual event: means an event:
  (A) Authorized by two-thirds (2/3) vote of all members elected to each house of the general assembly. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Annual event application: means the application made to the secretary of state to operate an annual event. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• 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.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Article V convention: means a convention for proposing amendments to the . See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• 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}
• bingo: means a specific game of chance in which participants use cards or paper sheets divided into horizontal and vertical spaces, each of which is designated by a letter and a number, and prizes are awarded on the basis of the letters and numbers on the card conforming to a predetermined and preannounced configuration of letters and numbers selected at random. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Board: means the mayor and the aldermen. See Tennessee Code 6-1-101
• Caucus: From the Algonquian Indian language, a caucus meant "to meet together." An informal organization of members of the legislature that exists to discuss issues of mutual concern and possibly to perform legislative research and policy planning for its members. There are regional, political or ideological, ethnic, and economic-based caucuses.
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• City: means any city or territory to be incorporated that may adopt chapters 30-36 of this title. See Tennessee Code 6-30-102
• Code: means and includes any published compilation of rules and regulations that have been prepared by various technical trade associations and shall include specifically, but not be limited to, building codes. See Tennessee Code 6-54-501
• Code: includes the Tennessee Code and all amendments and revisions to the code and all additions and supplements to the code. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Collector: includes any person entrusted with the collection of public revenue. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Commissioner: means the commissioner or such official designated by the city ordinance, to be appointed by the municipality. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• 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.
• Contiguous: means having a shared portion of boundary. See Tennessee Code 6-51-401
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• 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.
• County: means the county in which any such city or territory to be incorporated under chapters 30-36 of this title is located, or in which the major portion of the population of any such city or territory to be incorporated is located as indicated by the last federal census. See Tennessee Code 6-30-102
• County mayor: means and includes "county executive" unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• 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}
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• day: means a twenty-four-hour period beginning at twelve o'clock (12:00) midnight and ending at eleven fifty-nine post meridiem (11:59 p. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Delegate: means an individual elected as provided by this chapter to represent Tennessee at an Article V convention. See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• Department: means the fire department or police department of any municipality that pays wages to its employees for services rendered. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Election: includes all elections, local, municipal, primary, general, state, federal and special and any election in the state or any county, municipality or other political subdivision thereof, but does not include referenda or issues submitted to a vote of the people, political convention or caucus. See Tennessee Code 2-19-201
• Employee: means any person who, on the adoption of this part, is a paid employee in the fire department or police department of any municipality and a member of a municipal retirement system or pension plan. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• Event date: means the day of an annual event. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• 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.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• 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.
• Financial accounting: means a report of funds collected and expended for the annual event that is filed after completion of an annual event. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governing body: means the official or officials authorized by law to exercise ordinance or other law-making power of a municipality. See Tennessee Code 6-54-701
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• House of representatives: means the house of representatives of the general assembly. See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• Impeachment: (1) The process of calling something into question, as in "impeaching the testimony of a witness." (2) The constitutional process whereby the House of Representatives may "impeach" (accuse of misconduct) high officers of the federal government for trial in the Senate.
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Inspector: means an inspector of the department of licenses. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• 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.
• Lands: includes lands, tenements and hereditaments, and all rights thereto and interests therein, equitable as well as legal. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
• 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}
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• License: means a license issued pursuant to this part. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• Licensee: means any person to whom a license has been issued pursuant to this part. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Local transfer and storage business: means the business of transferring and/or storing for a profit the household goods and effects of another within the confines of the territorial limits of the municipality adopting this part. See Tennessee Code 6-54-701
• Month: means a calendar month. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• municipalities: refers to incorporated cities and towns in this state. See Tennessee Code 6-51-401
• Municipality: means and includes any city or town organized and operating under the general or special laws of the state. See Tennessee Code 6-54-501
• Municipality: means any incorporated city or incorporated town of this state, with a population in excess of four hundred thousand (400,000), according to the federal census of 1960 or any subsequent federal census. See Tennessee Code 6-54-701
• Municipality: means any municipality having its own employees retirement system or pension plan. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Municipality: means any incorporated city or any incorporated town. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• Nonprofit organization: means :
  (A) A 501(c)(3) organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under §. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Oath: includes affirmation. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Officer: means the mayor, aldermen, city attorney and city judge. See Tennessee Code 6-1-101
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Paired delegate: means the delegate with whom an alternate delegate is paired as provided by this chapter. See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• 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.
• pension plan: means an existing system or plan by which a municipality is paying or will pay the retired employees of its fire department or police department a retirement allowance after such employees have complied with certain conditions or requirements of employment or service to the municipality. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Performance audit: means a review of the procedures followed to conduct the election. See Tennessee Code 2-20-101
• Person: means any individual, organization, trust, foundation, group, association, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, society, or any combination of them, or any other entity. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• 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.
• Precinct-based optical scanner: means an optical ballot scanner that is located in the precinct and into which optical scan voter-verified paper ballots, marked either by hand by the voter or with the assistance of a device, are inserted to count the voter verified paper ballot. See Tennessee Code 2-20-101
• Property: includes both personal and real property. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Public defender: Represent defendants who can't afford an attorney in criminal matters.
• public record: include the state laws, rules or regulations of any state other than the state of Tennessee. See Tennessee Code 6-54-501
• Published: means printed, lithographed, multigraphed, or otherwise reproduced. See Tennessee Code 6-54-501
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• real property: include lands, tenements and hereditaments, and all rights thereto and interests therein, equitable as well as legal. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• relative: means a parent, foster parent, parent-in-law, child, spouse, brother, foster brother, sister, foster sister, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, brother-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, or other family member who resides in the same household. See Tennessee Code 3-1-202
• 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.
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Representative: when applied to those who represent a decedent, includes executors and administrators, unless the context implies heirs and distributees. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Retired employee: means any person who has been a paid employee in the fire department or police department of any municipality and who, on the adoption of this part, is receiving from such municipality a retirement allowance based upon such person's service in such department. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Retirement allowance: means the monthly payment for life made to a retired employee or the retired employee's survivors or beneficiaries under a municipal employees retirement system or pension plan. See Tennessee Code 6-54-801
• Risk-limiting audit: means a protocol which checks a random sample of ballots chosen by statistical methods. See Tennessee Code 2-20-101
• Road: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Sales: means the sale or any offer to sell to the public goods, wares and merchandise of any and all kinds and descriptions on hand and in stock in connection with a declared purpose, as set forth by advertising, on the part of the seller that such sale is anticipatory to the termination, closing, liquidation, revision, windup, discontinuance, conclusion or abandonment of the business in connection with such sale. See Tennessee Code 6-55-401
• Secretary: means the secretary of state or the secretary of state's authorized representative. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Senate: means the senate of the general assembly. See Tennessee Code 3-18-102
• signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subscription: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Teacher: means any person employed in a public school system as a teacher, helping teacher, teacher's aide, librarian, principal, supervisor, director of schools, or member of the administrative staff. See Tennessee Code 2-19-201
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Top race: means the presidential race, if the presidential race is on the ballot, or the governor's race, if the governor's race is on the ballot. See Tennessee Code 2-20-101
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Transfer and storage regulatory board: means any regulatory board created pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 6-54-701
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Type of lottery game: means a game of chance played by a person eighteen (18) years of age or older, including bingo, raffles, reverse raffles, cakewalks and cakewheels, but expressly prohibiting pulltabs, punchboards, instant bingo, video lottery, instant and online lottery games of a type operated by the Tennessee education lottery corporation, keno and games of chance associated with casinos including, but not limited to, slot machines, roulette wheels, and the like. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• video lottery: means a lottery that allows a game to be played utilizing an electronic computer and an interactive terminal device, equipped with a video screen and keys, a keyboard or other equipment allowing input by an individual player, into which the player inserts coins or currency as consideration in order for play to be available, and through which terminal device, the player may receive free games or a voucher that can be redeemed for a cash or non-cash prize, or nothing, determined wholly or predominantly by chance. See Tennessee Code 3-17-102
• Ward: means a geographical subdivision of the municipality established for the purpose of securing representation on the board. See Tennessee Code 6-1-101
• written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105