Terms Used In U.S. Code > Title 22 > Chapter 74 > Subchapter IV > Part B - Miscellaneous Provisions

• 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.
• biomaterials supplier: means an entity that directly or indirectly supplies a component part or raw material for use in the manufacture of an implant. See 21 USC 1602
• claimant: means any person who brings a civil action, or on whose behalf a civil action is brought, arising from harm allegedly caused directly or indirectly by an implant, including a person other than the individual into whose body, or in contact with whose blood or tissue, the implant is placed, who claims to have suffered harm as a result of the implant. See 21 USC 1602
• county: includes a parish, or any other equivalent subdivision of a State or Territory of the United States. See 1 USC 2
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• 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:
• 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.
• harm: means &mdash. See 21 USC 1602
• implant: means &mdash. See 21 USC 1602
• 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.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• manufacturer: means any person who, with respect to an implant&mdash. See 21 USC 1602
• officer: includes any person authorized by law to perform the duties of the office. See 1 USC 1
• 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.
• Secretary: means the Secretary of Health and Human Services. See 21 USC 1602
• seller: means a person who, in the course of a business conducted for that purpose, sells, distributes, leases, packages, labels, or otherwise places an implant in the stream of commerce. See 21 USC 1602
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• State: means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other territory or possession of the United States. See 1 USC 7
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.