Terms Used In Michigan Laws > Chapter 500 > Act 218 of 1956 > Chapter 81a - Fraternal Benefit Societies

• 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.
• 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.
• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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}
• Benefit contract: means the agreement for provision of benefits authorized by section 8179, as that agreement is described in section 8182(1). See Michigan Laws 500.8161
• Benefit member: means an adult member designated by the laws or rules of the society to be a benefit member under a benefit contract. See Michigan Laws 500.8161
• Certificate: means the document issued as written evidence of a benefit contract. See Michigan Laws 500.8161
• Charity: An agency, institution, or organization in existence and operating for the benefit of an indefinite number of persons and conducted for educational, religious, scientific, medical, or other beneficent purposes.
• Commission: means a historic district commission created by the legislative body of a local unit under section 4. See Michigan Laws 399.201a
• Commission: means the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund commission created in section 3. See Michigan Laws 399.262
• Commission: means the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund commission created in the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund commission act. See Michigan Laws 399.272
• Commissioner: means the director. See Michigan Laws 500.102
• Committee: means a historic district study committee appointed by the legislative body of a local unit under section 3 or 14. See Michigan Laws 399.201a
• 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.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Department: means the department of insurance and financial services. See Michigan Laws 500.102
• Department: means the department of state. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Director: means , unless the context clearly implies a different meaning, the director of the department. See Michigan Laws 500.102
• Durand: means the city of Durand, a home rule city situated in Shiawassee county. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• 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 market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• 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.
• Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Grace period: The number of days you'll have to pay your bill for purchases in full without triggering a finance charge. ^{Source: Federal Reserve}
• Historic district: means an area, or group of areas not necessarily having contiguous boundaries, that contains 1 resource or a group of resources that are related by history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, or culture. See Michigan Laws 399.201a
• Historic preservation: means the identification, evaluation, establishment, and protection of resources significant in history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, or culture. See Michigan Laws 399.201a
• in writing: shall be construed to include printing, engraving, and lithographing; except that if the written signature of a person is required by law, the signature shall be the proper handwriting of the person or, if the person is unable to write, the person's proper mark, which may be, unless otherwise expressly prohibited by law, a clear and classifiable fingerprint of the person made with ink or another substance. See Michigan Laws 8.3q
• Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. ^{Source: FDIC}
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Insurer: means an individual, corporation, association, partnership, reciprocal exchange, inter-insurer, Lloyds organization, fraternal benefit society, or other legal entity, engaged or attempting to engage in the business of making insurance or surety contracts. See Michigan Laws 500.106
• 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.
• Laws: means the society's articles of incorporation, constitution, and bylaws, however designated. See Michigan Laws 500.8161
• 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}
• Lender: means a person whose name appears on the records of the museum as the person legally entitled to property on loan to a museum, or a person the museum knows to be legally entitled to property on loan to a museum, or a person who establishes his or her legal entitlement to that property. See Michigan Laws 399.602
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Loan: means a deposit of property that is not accompanied by a transfer of title to the property. See Michigan Laws 399.602
• Local unit: means a county, city, village, or township. See Michigan Laws 399.201a
• Lodge: means the subordinate member units of a society, including camps, courts, councils, branches, or other similar designation. See Michigan Laws 500.8161
• Majority leader: see Floor Leaders
• Maritime corporation: means the Lake Michigan maritime museum, inc. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Maritime museum: means the Michigan maritime museum situated in South Haven and operated under authority of this act. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Maritime museum advisory board: means the Michigan maritime museum advisory board created by section 106. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Maritime museum store: means the retail sales store located in the maritime museum, as authorized by section 108. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Maritime museum trust fund: means the Michigan maritime museum trust fund created by section 108. See Michigan Laws 399.302
• Markup: The process by which congressional committees and subcommittees debate, amend, and rewrite proposed legislation.
• month: means a calendar month; the word "year" a calendar year; and the word "year" alone shall be equivalent to the words "year of our Lord". See Michigan Laws 8.3j
• Monument fund: means the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund created in the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund act. See Michigan Laws 399.262
• Monument fund: means the Ronald Wilson Reagan memorial monument fund created in section 3. See Michigan Laws 399.272
• Museum: means an institution generally known as a museum, archives, or library located in this state that is or does each of the following: