Terms Used In Tennessee Code > Title 36 > Chapter 1 > Part 1 - General Provisions

• abandonment: means that:
  (i)

  (a) If the child is four (4) years of age or more, for a period of four (4) consecutive months immediately preceding the filing of a proceeding, pleading, petition, or amended or supplemental petition to terminate the parental rights of the parent or parents or the guardian or guardians of the child who is the subject of the petition for termination of parental rights or adoption, the parent or parents or the guardian or guardians either have failed to visit or have failed to support or have failed to make reasonable payments toward the support of the child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Abandonment of an infant: means , for purposes of terminating parental or guardian rights, "abandonment" of a child under one (1) year of age. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adopted person: means :
  (A) Any person who is or has been adopted under this part or under the laws of any state, territory, or foreign country. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adoption: means the social and legal process of establishing by court order, other than by paternity or legitimation proceedings or by voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, the legal relationship of parent and child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adoption assistance: means the federal or state programs that exist to provide financial assistance to adoptive parents to enable them to provide a permanent home to a special needs child as defined by the department. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adoption record: means :
  (A)

  (i) The records, reports, or other documents maintained in any medium by the judge or clerk of the court, or by any other person pursuant to this part who is authorized to witness the execution of surrenders or revocations of surrenders, which records, reports, or documents relate to an adoption petition, a surrender or parental consent, a revocation of a surrender or parental consent, or which reasonably relate to other information concerning the adoption of a person, and which information in such records, reports, or documents exists during the pendency of an adoption or a termination of parental rights proceeding, or which records, reports, or documents exist subsequent to the conclusion of those proceedings, even if no order of adoption or order of dismissal is entered, but which records, reports or documents exist prior to those records, reports, or documents becoming a part of a sealed record or a sealed adoption record pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adoptive parent or parents: means the person or persons who have been made the legal parents of a child by the entry of an order of adoption under this part or under of the laws of any state, territory or foreign country. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adult: means any person who is eighteen (18) years of age or older. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Adverse determination: means :
  (A) A determination by a health carrier or its designee utilization review organization that, based upon the information provided, a request for a benefit under the health carrier's health benefit plan does not meet the health carrier's requirements for medical necessity, appropriateness, healthcare setting, level of care or effectiveness and the requested benefit is therefore denied, reduced or terminated or payment is not provided or made, in whole or in part, for the benefit. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• 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 individual or entity that directly or indirectly through one (1) or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by or is under common control with a contracting entity. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Age of majority: means eighteen (18) years of age or older. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Aggrieved person: means :
  (A) A healthcare provider. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Agriculture: means :
  (i) The land, buildings and machinery used in the commercial production of farm products and nursery stock. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• 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.
• 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.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Attorney: means the person designated and authorized by subscribers as the attorney-in-fact having authority to obligate them on reciprocal insurance contracts. See Tennessee Code 56-16-102
• Attorney-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
• Authorized representative: means :
  (A) A person to whom a covered person has given express written consent to represent the covered person for purposes of this chapter. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• 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}
• benefits: means those healthcare services to which a covered person is entitled under the terms of a health benefit plan. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• beverage: means and includes alcohol, spirits, liquor, wine, high alcohol content beer, and every liquid containing alcohol, spirits, wine, and high alcohol content beer and capable of being consumed by a human being, other than patent medicine or beer, as defined in §. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Biological parents: means the woman and man who physically or genetically conceived the child who is the subject of the adoption or termination proceedings or who conceived the child who has made a request for information pursuant to this part. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• Chartered child-placing agency: means an agency that had received a charter from the state of Tennessee through legislative action or by incorporation for the operation of an entity or a program of any type that engaged in the placement of children for foster care or residential care as part of a plan or program for which those children were or could have been made available for adoptive placement and that may have, at sometime during its existence, become subject to any licensing requirements by the department or its predecessors. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Child-caring agency: means any agency authorized by law to care for children outside their own homes for twenty-four (24) hours per day. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• children: means any person or persons under eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• Clinical peer: means a physician or other healthcare professional who holds a nonrestricted license in a state of the United States and in the same or similar specialty that would typically manage the medical condition, procedure or treatment under review. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Clinical review criteria: means the written screening procedures, decision abstracts, clinical protocols and practice guidelines used by the health carrier to determine the medical necessity and appropriateness of healthcare services. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Closed plan: means a managed care plan that requires covered persons to use participating providers under the terms of the managed care plan or the plan will not provide covered benefits to the covered person. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• 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
• Commission: means the alcoholic beverage commission, except as otherwise provided. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Commissioner: means the commissioner of commerce and insurance. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Commissioner: means the commissioner of commerce and insurance. See Tennessee Code 56-1-102
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Consent: means :
  (A) The written authorization to relinquish a child for adoption, which is given by an agency such as the department or a public child care agency of another state or country or licensed child-placing agency of this or another state, which agency has the authority, by court order or by surrender or by operation of law or by any combination of these, to place a child for adoption and to give permission for the adoption of that child by other persons. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Conservator: means a person or entity appointed by a court to provide partial or full supervision, protection, and assistance of the person or property, or both, of a disabled adult pursuant to title 34, chapter 1 or the equivalent law of another state. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contracting entity: means any individual or entity that is engaged in the act of contracting with providers and that has entered into a provider network contract with a provider for the delivery of health care services. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• 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.
• County mayor: means and includes "county executive" unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• court: includes the juvenile court for purposes of the authority to accept the surrender or revocation of surrenders of a child and to issue any orders of reference, orders of guardianship, or other orders resulting from a surrender or revocation that it accepts and for purposes of authorizing the termination of parental rights pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Court report: means the report to the adoption or surrender court in response to an order of reference that describes to the court the status of the child and the prospective adoptive parents or the persons to whom the child is surrendered. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Covered person: means a policyholder, subscriber, enrollee or other individual participating in a health benefit plan. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• 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.
• Department: means the department of commerce and insurance. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Department: means the department of commerce and insurance. See Tennessee Code 56-1-102
• Department: means the department of children's services or any of its divisions or units. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• disability: means that the individual is a minor pursuant to any state, territorial, or federal law, or the law of any foreign country, or that the individual has been determined by any such laws to be in need of a person or entity to care for the individual due to that individual's physical or mental incapacity or infirmity. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Discount medical plan organization: means an entity that, in exchange for fees, dues, charges or other consideration, provides access for plan members to providers of medical services and the right to receive medical services from those providers at a discount. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• 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:
• Distiller: means any person who owns, occupies, carries on, works, conducts or operates any distillery either personally or by an agent. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Distillery: means and includes any place or premises wherein any liquors are manufactured for sale. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Eligible person: means , for purposes of §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Emergency medical condition: means the sudden and, at the time, unexpected onset of a health condition that requires immediate medical attention, where failure to provide medical attention would result in serious impairment to bodily functions, serious dysfunction of a bodily organ or part, or would place the person's health in serious jeopardy. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Emergency services: means healthcare items and services furnished or required to evaluate and treat an emergency medical condition. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Entity: means a corporation, business trust, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• 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: includes an administrator, where the subject matter applies to an administrator. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• External review organization: means an entity that conducts independent external reviews of adverse determinations and final adverse determinations of a health carrier. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Facility: means an institution licensed under title 68 providing healthcare services or a healthcare setting, including but not limited to, hospitals and other licensed inpatient centers, ambulatory surgical or treatment centers, skilled nursing centers, residential treatment centers, diagnostic, laboratory and imaging centers, and rehabilitation. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• failed to visit: means the failure, for the applicable time period, to visit or engage in more than token visitation. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Final adverse determination: means an adverse determination involving a covered benefit that has been upheld by a health carrier at the completion of the health carrier's internal grievance process procedures as set forth in this chapter. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Final court report: means a written document completed by the department or a licensed child-placing agency or licensed clinical social worker after submission of any prior court reports in response to the court's order of reference. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Financially able: means that the petitioners for adoption of a child are able, by use of any and all income and economic resources of the petitioners, including, but not limited to, assistance from public or private sources, to ensure that any physical, emotional, or special needs of the child are met. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Foster care: has the meaning given to that term in §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• gallons: means a wine gallon or wine gallons, of one hundred and twenty-eight ounces (128 oz. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Gift: means and includes the unauthorized distribution of alcoholic beverages by a licensee for which no payment is expected or received. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Grievance: means a written appeal of an adverse determination or final adverse determination submitted by or on behalf of a covered person regarding:
  (A) Availability, delivery or quality of healthcare services regarding an adverse determination. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• 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.
• Guardian: means a person or entity appointed by a court to provide care, custody, control, supervision, and protection for a child, and authorized by the court to adopt or consent to the adoption of the child as a result of a surrender, parental consent, or termination of parental rights. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Guardianship: means the status created by a court order appointing a person or entity guardian of the child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Health benefit plan: means a policy, contract, certificate or agreement offered or issued by a health carrier to provide, deliver, arrange for, pay for or reimburse any of the costs of healthcare services. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Health care services: means services for the diagnosis, prevention, treatment or cure of a health condition, illness, injury or disease. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Health carrier: means an entity subject to the insurance laws and regulations of this state, or subject to the jurisdiction of the commissioner, that contracts or offers to contract to provide, deliver, arrange for, pay for or reimburse any of the costs of healthcare services, including a sickness and accident insurance company, a health maintenance organization, a nonprofit hospital and health service corporation, or any other entity providing a plan of health insurance, health benefits or healthcare services. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Health insurance plan: means any hospital and medical expense incurred policy, nonprofit health care service plan contract, health maintenance organization subscriber contract or any other health care plan or arrangement that pays for or furnishes medical or health care services, whether by insurance or otherwise. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Healthcare professional: means a physician or other healthcare practitioner licensed, accredited or certified to perform specified healthcare services consistent with state law. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Healthcare services: means services for the diagnosis, prevention, treatment, cure or relief of a health condition, illness, injury or disease. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• High alcohol content beer: means an alcoholic beverage which is beer, ale or other malt beverage having an alcoholic content of more than eight percent (8%) by weight and not more than twenty percent (20%) by weight, except wine as defined in §. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Highway: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Home study: means the product of a preparation process in which individuals or families are assessed by themselves and the department or licensed child-placing agency, or a licensed clinical social worker as to their suitability for adoption and their desires with regard to the child they wish to adopt. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Importer: means any person or entity holding a non-manufacturer non-resident seller's permit pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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}
• Legal parent: means :
  (i) The biological mother of a child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Legal relative: means a person who is included in the class of persons set forth in the definition of "biological relative" or "legal parent" and who, at the time a request for services or information is made pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Legal representative: means :
  (i) The conservator, guardian, legal custodian, or other person or entity with legal authority to make decisions for an individual with a disability or an attorney-in-fact, an attorney at law representing a person for purposes of obtaining information pursuant to this part, or the legally appointed administrator, executor, or other legally appointed representative of a person's estate. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• License: means the license issued pursuant to this chapter. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Licensed child-placing agency: means any agency operating under a license to place children for adoption issued by the department, or operating under a license from any governmental authority from any other state or territory or the District of Columbia, or any agency that operates under the authority of another country with the right to make placement of children for adoption and that has, in the department's sole determination, been authorized to place children for adoption in this state. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Licensed clinical social worker: means an individual who holds a license as an independent practitioner from the board of social worker certification and licensure pursuant to title 63, chapter 23, and, in addition, is licensed by the department to provide adoption placement services. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Licensee: means any person to whom such license has been issued pursuant to this chapter. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Lineal ancestor: means any degree of grandparent or great-grandparent, either by birth or adoption. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Lineal descendant: Direct descendant of the same ancestors.
• Lineal descendant: means a person who descended directly from another person who is the biological or adoptive ancestor of such person, such as the daughter of the daughter's mother or granddaughter of the granddaughter's grandmother. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Managed care plan: includes :
  (A) A closed plan, as defined in subdivision (6). See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Manufacture: means and includes brewing high alcohol content beer, distilling, rectifying and operating a winery. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Manufacturer: means and includes a brewer of high alcohol content beer, distiller, vintner and rectifier. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• medical necessity: means healthcare services that a physician, exercising prudent clinical judgment, would provide to a patient for the purpose of preventing, evaluating, diagnosing or treating an illness, injury, disease or its symptoms, and that are:
  (A) In accordance with generally accepted standards of medical practice. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Medical or scientific evidence: means evidence found in the following sources. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Minor: means any person who has not attained eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Month: means a calendar month. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Municipality: means an incorporated town or city having a population of:
  (i) Seven hundred (700) or more, according to the 2010 federal census or a subsequent federal census. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Oath: includes affirmation. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• 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.
• Open plan: means a managed care plan, other than a closed plan, that provides incentives, including financial incentives, for covered persons to use participating providers under the terms of the managed care plan. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Order of reference: means the order from the court where the surrender is executed or filed or where the adoption petition is filed that directs the department or a licensed child-placing agency or licensed clinical social worker to conduct a home study or preliminary home study or to complete a report of the status of the child who is or may be the subject of an adoption proceeding, and that seeks information as to the suitability of the prospective adoptive parents to adopt a child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Parental consent: means the consent described in subdivision (16)(C). See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Parental rights: means the legally recognized rights and responsibilities to act as a parent, to care for, to name, and to claim custodial rights with respect to a child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• parents: means any biological, legal, adoptive parent or parents or, for purposes of §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• Person: means an individual, a corporation, a partnership, an association, a joint venture, a joint stock company, a trust, an unincorporated organization, any similar entity or any combination of the entities listed in this subdivision (28). See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Person: means any association, aggregate of individuals, business, company, corporation, individual, joint-stock company, Lloyds-type organization, organization, partnership, receiver, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, trustee or society. See Tennessee Code 56-16-102
• Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Personal property: includes money, goods, chattels, things in action, and evidences of debt. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Physical custody: means physical possession and care of a child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Physician: means any individual licensed as a chiropractic physician under title 63, chapter 4. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Physician hospital organization: means an organization that includes, but is not limited to, hospitals and physicians and that contracts with and provides administrative services to hospitals and physicians that have entered into or intend to enter into managed care arrangements. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• Physician organization: means an organization that contracts with and provides administrative services to physicians who have entered into managed care arrangements. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• 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.
• Post-adoption record: means :
  (A) The record maintained in any medium by the department, separately from the sealed record or sealed adoption record and subsequent to the sealing of an adoption record or that is maintained about any sealed record or sealed adoption record. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Preliminary hearing: A hearing where the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to make the defendant have a trial.
• Preliminary home study: means an initial home study conducted prior to or, in limited situations, immediately after, the placement of a child with prospective adoptive parents who have not previously been subject to a home study that was conducted or updated not less than six (6) months prior to the date a surrender is sought to be executed to the prospective adoptive parents or prior to the date of the filing of the adoption petition. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Property: includes both personal and real property. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Prospective adoptive parents: means a nonagency person or persons who are seeking to adopt a child and who have made application with a licensed child-placing agency or licensed clinical social worker or the department for approval, or who have been previously approved, to receive a child for adoption, or who have received or who expect to receive a surrender of a child, or who have filed a petition for termination or for adoption. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Prospective review: means utilization review conducted prior to an admission or the provision of a healthcare service or a course of treatment in accordance with a health carrier's requirement that the healthcare service or course of treatment, in whole or in part, be approved prior to its provision or admission. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Provider: means a physician, a physician organization or a physician hospital organization. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• provider: means a healthcare professional or a facility. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Putative father: means a biological or alleged biological father of a child who, at the time of the filing of the petition to terminate the parental rights of such person, or if no such petition is filed, at the time of the filing of a petition to adopt a child, meets at least one (1) of the criteria set out in §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• 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
• Rectifier: means and includes any person who rectifies, purifies or refines distilled spirits or wines by any process other than as provided for on distillery premises, and every person who, without rectifying, purifying or refining distilled spirits, shall, by mixing such spirits, wine or other liquor with any material, manufacture any imitation of, or compounds liquors for sale under the name of, whiskey, brandy, gin, rum, wine, spirits, cordials, bitters or any other name. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Register: means the written records kept by a health carrier to document all grievances received during a calendar year. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Related: means grandparents or any degree of great-grandparents, aunts or uncles, or any degree of great-aunts or great-uncles, or stepparent, or cousins of the first degree, or first cousins once removed, or any siblings of the whole or half degree or any spouse of the above listed relatives. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• 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
• Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
• Retailer: means any person who sells at retail any beverage for the sale of which a license is required under this chapter. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Retrospective review: means any review of a request for a benefit that is not a prospective review request. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• sale at retail: means a sale to a consumer or to any person for any purpose other than for resale. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Sealed adoption record: means :
  (i) The adoption record as it exists subsequent to its transmittal to the department, or subsequent to its sealing by the court, pursuant to the requirements of §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Sealed record: means :
  (i) Any records, reports, or documents that are maintained at any time by a court, a court clerk, a licensed or chartered child-placing agency, licensed clinical social worker, the department, the department of health, or any other information source concerning the foster care or agency care placement, or placement for adoption, of a person by any branch of the Tennessee children's home society authorized by chapter 113 of the Public Acts of 1919. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• sex: means a person's immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at the time of birth and evidence of a person's biological sex. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Sibling: means anyone having a sibling relationship. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Sibling relationship: means the biological or legal relationship between persons who have a common biological or legal parent. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subscriber: means a person obligated under a reciprocal insurance agreement. See Tennessee Code 56-16-102
• Surrender: means a document executed under §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Surrogate birth: means :
  (i) The union of the wife's egg and the husband's sperm, which are then placed in another woman, who carries the fetus to term and who, pursuant to a contract, then relinquishes all parental rights to the child to the biological parents pursuant to the terms of the contract. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• Testator: A male person who leaves a will at death.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Third party: means an organization that enters into a contract with a contracting entity or with another third party to gain access to a provider network contract. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• token support: means that the support, under the circumstances of the individual case, is insignificant given the parent's means. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• token visitation: means that the visitation, under the circumstances of the individual case, constitutes nothing more than perfunctory visitation or visitation of such an infrequent nature or of such short duration as to merely establish minimal or insubstantial contact with the child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
• 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.
• 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.
• under common control with: means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of an individual or entity, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract other than a commercial contract for goods or nonmanagement services, or otherwise, unless the power is the result of an official position with or corporate office held by the individual or entity. See Tennessee Code 56-60-102
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
• Uphold: The decision of an appellate court not to reverse a lower court decision.
• Urgent care request: means a request for a healthcare service or course of treatment with respect to which the time periods for making nonurgent care request determination:
  (i) Could seriously jeopardize the life or health of the covered person or the ability of the covered person to regain maximum function. See Tennessee Code 56-61-102
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Vintner: means any person who owns, occupies, carries on, works, conducts or operates any winery, either personally or by an agent. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Wholesaler: means any person who sells at wholesale any beverage for the sale of which a license is required under this chapter. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Wine: means the product of the normal alcoholic fermentation of the juice of dried or fresh, sound, ripe grapes, fruit, or other agricultural products, with the usual cellar treatment and necessary additions to correct defects due to climatic, saccharine, and seasonal conditions, including champagne, sparkling, and fortified wine of an alcoholic content not to exceed twenty-one percent (21%) by volume. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• Winery: means and includes any place or premises wherein wines are manufactured from any fruit or brandies distilled as the by-product of wine or other fruit or cordials compounded, and also includes a winery for the manufacture of wine. See Tennessee Code 57-3-101
• 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