Terms Used In Vermont Statutes > Title 4 > Chapter 11 - Justices of the Peace

• Administratrix: The female counterpart of an administrator. See also
• Adoptee: means a person who is adopted or is to be adopted. See
• Adult: means a person who has attained 18 years of age. See
• Agency: means the Department or a child-placing public or private entity that is licensed in this State to place minors for adoption. See
• 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.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Child: means a minor or an adult son or daughter, by birth or adoption. See
• child: as used in this subchapter , shall mean a child who is under the age of 18 years, or is under the age of 21 years and is a student regularly attending a school, college or university or their equivalent, or is regularly attending a course of vocational or technical training designed to fit him for gainful employment, and shall include a "stepchild" under such age. See
• Civil union: means that two eligible persons have established a relationship pursuant to this chapter, and may receive the benefits and protections and be subject to the responsibilities of spouses. See
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Health. See
• 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.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• 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 for Children and Families. See
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Domestic: when applied to a corporation, company, association, or copartnership shall mean organized under the laws of this State; "foreign" when so applied, shall mean organized under the laws of another state, government, or country. See
• 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.
• Executrix: The female counterpart of an executor. See also
• Fees: shall mean earnings due for official services, aside from salaries or per diem compensation. See
• following: when used by way of reference to a section of the law shall mean the next preceding or following section. See
• Former parent: means the parent of the adoptee whose rights were terminated, voluntarily or involuntarily. See
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
• Guardian: means a person, other than a parent, appointed by a court to act as a parent for another individual and specifically authorized by the Court to place the individual for adoption. See
• 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.
• Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• 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.
• Justice: when applied to a person, other than a Justice of the Supreme Court, shall mean a justice of the peace for the county for which he or she is elected or appointed. See
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Magistrate: shall mean any Supreme Court Justice, Superior judge, District judge, or Probate judge. See
• Minor: means a person who has not attained 18 years of age. See
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Municipality: shall include a city, town, town school district, incorporated school or fire district or incorporated village, and all other governmental incorporated units. See
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Oath: shall include affirmation where by law an affirmation may be substituted. See
• Parent: means a person who is legally recognized as a mother or father or whose consent to the adoption of a minor is required under subdivision 2-401(a)(1)-(4) or (6) of this title. See
• 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.
• Party to a civil union: means a person who has established a civil union pursuant to this chapter and 18 Vt. See
• Person: shall include any natural person, corporation, municipality, the State of Vermont or any department, agency, or subdivision of the State, and any partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See
• Personal estate: shall include all property other than real estate. See
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Physical custody: means the physical care and supervision of a minor. See
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• 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.
• 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}
• Power of attorney: means a writing or other record that grants authority to an agent to act in the place of the principal, whether or not the term power of attorney is used. See
• Probate: Proving a will
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• real estate: shall include lands, tenements, and hereditaments and all rights thereto and interests therein, and pews or slips in places of public worship shall be treated as real estate. See
• Records: means all documents, exhibits and data pertaining to an adoption, whether collected prior to or after the decree of adoption. See
• Registry: means the adoption registry administered by the Department. See
• Sibling: means a full or half brother or sister. See
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See
• State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Stepparent: means a person who is the spouse or surviving spouse of a parent of a child but who is not a parent of the child. See
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Town: shall include city and wards or precincts therein; "selectboard members" and "board of civil authority" shall extend to and include the mayor and aldermen of cities; "trustees" shall extend to and include bailiffs of incorporated villages; and the laws applicable to the inhabitants and officers of towns shall be applicable to the inhabitants and similar officers of all municipal corporations. See
• 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.