Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes > Chapter 264 - Accidents and Financial Responsibility

• Accident: shall mean any event that results in injury or property damage attributable directly or indirectly to the motion of a motor vehicle or its load. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:1-a
• 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.
• 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.
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Certificate: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:9
• Commercial motor vehicle: shall mean a motor vehicle or a combination of motor vehicles, used in commerce, to transport passengers or property if:
  (a) The vehicle has a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more;
  (b) The vehicle has a gross combination weight rating or actual weight of 26,001 or more pounds, inclusive of any towed unit with gross vehicle weight rating or actual weight of more than 10,000 pounds;
  (c) The vehicle is designed or used to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver; or
  (d) The vehicle is of any size and is used in the transportation of hazardous materials required to be placarded under 49 C. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:12-e
• Commissioner: shall mean the commissioner of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:13
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: shall mean an adjudication of guilt which has not been annulled or vacated, a determination that a person has violated or failed to comply with the law in a court of original jurisdiction or an administrative proceeding, an unvacated forfeiture of bail or collateral deposited to secure the person's appearance in court, a plea of guilty or nolo contendere accepted by the court, the payment of a fine or court costs, or the violation of a condition of release without bail, regardless of whether the penalty is rebated, suspended or otherwise affected by probation. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:14
• 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.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: shall mean the department of safety of the state of New Hampshire. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:19
• Director: shall mean the director of the division of motor vehicles of the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:20
• Division: shall mean the division of motor vehicles in the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:22
• Driver: shall mean a person who drives or is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:25
• 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.
• following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
• Garage: shall mean every place where 5 or more motor vehicles are stored or housed at any one time, except such places in which motor vehicles are kept by the owners thereof without payment for storage. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:38
• 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
• Judgment: shall mean any judgment which shall have become final, rendered by a court of competent jurisdiction of any state, or of the United States. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:46
• 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 magistrate, shall mean a justice of a municipal court, or a justice of the peace having jurisdiction over the subject-matter. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:12
• 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}
• License: shall mean any driver's license or any other license or permit to drive a vehicle issued under the laws of this state or a reciprocating state including:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:48
• Lienholder: shall mean a person holding a security interest in a vehicle. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:49
• Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
• Motor vehicle: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:60
• Motor vehicle liability policy: shall mean a policy of liability insurance which provides:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:61
• Next of kin: shall mean the spouse, child, parent, stepparent, sibling, or legal guardian of the individual in question. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:66-a
• Nonresident: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:67
• Owner: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:72
• Person: shall mean the same as provided in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:74
• petition: when used in connection with the equity jurisdiction of the superior court, and referring to a document filed with the court, shall mean complaint, and "petitioner" shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Police officer: shall mean any constable, peace officer, or other officer authorized to make arrests or serve process. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:78
• 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.
• Registration number: shall mean the number or mark assigned by the director to a vehicle. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:85
• Resident: shall mean a resident of the state as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:88
• Revocation: shall mean the termination by formal action of the department or of a court of competent jurisdiction of a person's driver's license or privilege to drive on the ways of this state, or of any other license, registration or permit issued by the department. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:90
• roadway: means that portion of a way improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, including the berm or shoulder where such berm or shoulder is used by persons riding bicycles or other human powered vehicles. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:75-b
• Semi-trailer: shall mean a vehicle of the trailer type so designed and used in conjunction with a self-propelled vehicle that a considerable part of its own weight or that of its load rests upon and is carried by the towing vehicle, and not including a pair or set of wheels commonly used as an implement for other purposes than transportation, provided, however, that the word "semi-trailer" shall not include any vehicle as described in this section if used exclusively for agricultural purposes unless said vehicle be of the type constructed specifically to be towed by a tractor-type truck. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:98
• Serious traffic violation: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:98-a
• 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.
• State: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:106
• Suspension: shall mean the temporary withdrawal by formal action of the department or of a court of competent jurisdiction of a person's driver's license or privilege to drive a vehicle on the ways of this state, or any other license, registration or permit issued by the department, which temporary withdrawal shall be for a period specifically designated by the department or court and until the reissuance of the license, registration, permit or privilege. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:107
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Traffic: shall mean pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars, and other conveyances either singly or together while using any way for purposes of travel. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:110
• Trailer: shall mean any vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for being drawn by a self-propelled vehicle, except those running exclusively on snow or on stationary tracks and vehicles used exclusively for agricultural purposes. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:113
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Vehicle: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:122
• Way: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:125