Terms Used In California Codes > Government Code > Title 3 > Division 2 > Part 2 > Chapter 1 - Organization

• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• 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.
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• 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.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Aquaculture: means that form of agriculture devoted to the propagation, cultivation, maintenance, and harvesting of aquatic plants and animals in marine, brackish, and fresh water. See California Fish and Game Code 17
• 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.
• 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}
• Bird: means a wild bird or part of a wild bird. See California Fish and Game Code 22
• Board: as used in this chapter , means the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists established under Section 6710. See California Business and Professions Code 7801
• board: means any entity listed in Section 101, the entities referred to in Sections 1000 and 3600, the State Bar, the Department of Real Estate, and any other state agency that issues a license, certificate, or registration authorizing a person to engage in a business or profession. See California Business and Professions Code 31
• Bureau: means the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau. See California Business and Professions Code 7601
• Buy: includes an offer to buy, purchase, barter, exchange, or trade. See California Fish and Game Code 24
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• City: includes "city and county" and "incorporated town" but does not include "unincorporated town" or "village. See California Government Code 20
• City: includes city and county. See California Business and Professions Code 18
• Commission: means the Fish and Game Commission, and "commissioner" means a member of the Fish and Game Commission. See California Fish and Game Code 30
• Community estate: includes both community property and quasi-community property. See California Family Code 63
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• complaint: means a valid complaint as specified in subdivision (b). See California Government Code 8944
• Concurrent resolution: A legislative measure, designated "S. Con. Res." and numbered consecutively upon introduction, generally employed to address the sentiments of both chambers, to deal with issues or matters affecting both houses, such as a concurrent budget resolution, or to create a temporary joint committee. Concurrent resolutions are not submitted to the President/Governor and thus do not have the force of law.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: as used in this part means a corporation which is organized under, or subject to this part, including a central organization. See California Corporations Code 12232
• 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: includes city and county. See California Government Code 19
• County: includes city and county. See California Business and Professions Code 17
• County: includes "city and county. See California Corporations Code 14
• County: includes city and county. See California Fish and Game Code 32
• County: includes city and county. See California Food and Agricultural Code 29
• Credible science: means the best available scientific information that is not overly prescriptive due to the dynamic nature of science, and includes the evaluation principles of relevance, inclusiveness, objectivity, transparency, timeliness, verification, validation, and peer review of information as appropriate. See California Fish and Game Code 33
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Date of separation: means the date that a complete and final break in the marital relationship has occurred, as evidenced by both of the following:

  California Family Code 70

• Day: means calendar day, and "week" means calendar week. See California Fish and Game Code 35
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the Department of Consumer Affairs. See California Business and Professions Code 7601
• Department: means the Department of Fish and Wildlife. See California Fish and Game Code 37
• Department: means the Department of Food and Agriculture. See California Food and Agricultural Code 32
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Digital signature: means an electronic identifier, created by computer, intended by the party using it to have the same force and effect as the use of a manual signature. See California Government Code 16.5
• Director: means the Director of Consumer Affairs. See California Business and Professions Code 7601
• Director: means the Director of Fish and Wildlife. See California Fish and Game Code 39
• Directors: means natural persons, designated in the articles or bylaws or elected by the incorporators, and their successors and natural persons designated, elected, or appointed by any other name or title to act as members of the governing body of the corporation. See California Corporations Code 12233
• 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:
• District: means fish and game district. See California Fish and Game Code 41
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• 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}
• Escheat: Reversion of real or personal property to the state when 1) a person dies without leaving a will and has no heirs, or 2) when the property (such as a bank account) has been inactive for a certain period of time. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• 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.
• Fish: means a wild fish, mollusk, crustacean, invertebrate, amphibian, or part, spawn, or ovum of any of those animals. See California Fish and Game Code 45
• Fishery: means both of the following:

  California Fish and Game Code 94

• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Geologist: as used in this chapter , refers to a person engaged in the practice of geology. See California Business and Professions Code 7803
• Geology: as used in this chapter , refers to that science which treats of the earth in general. See California Business and Professions Code 7802
• Geophysicist: as used in this chapter , refers to a person engaged in the practice of geophysics. See California Business and Professions Code 7803.1
• Geophysics: as used in this chapter , refers to that science which involves study of the physical earth by means of measuring its natural and induced fields of force, including, but not limited to, electric, gravity, and magnetic, and its responses to natural and induced energy and the interpreting of these measurements and the relating of them to the physics of the earth. See California Business and Professions Code 7802.1
• Germane: On the subject of the pending bill or other business; a strict standard of relevance.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• guide: means any person who is engaged in the business of packing or guiding, or who, for a fee, assists another person in taking or attempting to take any bird, mammal, fish, amphibian, or reptile. See California Fish and Game Code 2535
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Joint committee: Committees including membership from both houses of teh legislature. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
• 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.
• Kelp: means kelp or other marine aquatic plants and the seeds thereof. See California Fish and Game Code 51
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• license: means license, certificate, registration, or other means to engage in a business or profession regulated by this code or referred to in Section 1000 or 3600. See California Business and Professions Code 23.7
• Licensee: means any person authorized by a license, certificate, registration, or other means to engage in a business or profession regulated by this code or referred to in Sections 1000 and 3600. See California Business and Professions Code 23.8
• Mammal: means a wild or feral mammal or part of a wild or feral animal, but not a wild, feral, or undomesticated burro. See California Fish and Game Code 54
• Mile: means either a statute mile (5,280 feet) or a nautical mile (6,077 feet) depending on the application. See California Fish and Game Code 55
• Native reptiles: as used in this chapter means snakes, lizards, turtles, or any other members of the class reptilia native to California. See California Fish and Game Code 5060
• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• Notice: includes all papers and orders required to be served in any proceedings before any court, board, or officer, or when required by law to be served independently of such proceeding. See California Government Code 26660
• 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.
• order: include a decree, as appropriate under the circumstances. See California Family Code 100
• 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: includes any person, firm, association, organization, partnership, limited liability company, business trust, corporation, or company. See California Government Code 17
• person: includes any natural person, corporation, partnership, limited liability company, firm, or association. See California Government Code 7920.520
• Person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See California Corporations Code 18
• Person: includes a natural person, firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, limited liability company, or public entity. See California Family Code 105
• Person: means any natural person or any partnership, corporation, limited liability company, trust, or other type of association. See California Fish and Game Code 67
• Person: means any individual, partnership, association, corporation, limited liability company, or any organized group of persons whether incorporated or not. See California Food and Agricultural Code 38
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• 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.
• 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.
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Proceeding: includes an action. See California Family Code 110
• Process: includes a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings of either a civil or criminal nature. See California Government Code 22
• Process: includes all writs, warrants, summons, and orders of courts of justice, or judicial officers. See California Government Code 26660
• Property: includes real and personal property and any interest therein. See California Family Code 113
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• public agency: means any state or local agency. See California Government Code 7920.525
• public records: includes any writing containing information relating to the conduct of the public's business prepared, owned, used, or retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or characteristics. See California Government Code 7920.530
• Purchase: means "buy" as defined in Section 24. See California Fish and Game Code 68
• Quasi-community property: means all real or personal property, wherever situated, acquired before or after the operative date of this code in any of the following ways:

  California Family Code 125

• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Resident: means any person who has resided continuously in the State of California for six months or more immediately prior to the date of application for a license or permit, any person on active military duty with the Armed Forces of the United States or auxiliary branch thereof, or any person enrolled in the Job Corps established pursuant to former Section 2883 of Title 29 of the United States Code. See California Fish and Game Code 70
• season: means "open season. See California Fish and Game Code 62
• Secretary: means the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. See California Food and Agricultural Code 35
• Sell: includes offer or possess for sale, barter, exchange, or trade. See California Fish and Game Code 75
• 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.
• Spousal support: means support of the spouse of the obligor. See California Family Code 142
• Spouse: includes "registered domestic partner" as required by Section 297. See California Family Code 143
• State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Government Code 18
• State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Education Code 77
• State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Business and Professions Code 21
• State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, or a commonwealth, territory, or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See California Family Code 145
• State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Fish and Game Code 83
• state agency: includes every state office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, and commission. See California Government Code 11000
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs, unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Business and Professions Code 15
• Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Fish and Game Code 73
• Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Food and Agricultural Code 49
• Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which the term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Government Code 10
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Support: refers to a support obligation owing on behalf of a child, spouse, or family, or an amount owing pursuant to Section 17402. See California Family Code 150
• Take: means hunt, pursue, catch, capture, or kill, or attempt to hunt, pursue, catch, capture, or kill. See California Fish and Game Code 86
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• 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.
• Transport: includes offer or receive for transportation. See California Fish and Game Code 88
• 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.
• Trustor: The person who makes or creates a trust. Also known as the grantor or settlor.
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
• Wild rodents: as used in this chapter means wild ground squirrels, chipmunks, rats, mice or any other members of the order Rodentia native to California except muskrats and beavers. See California Fish and Game Code 2575
• Wildlife: means and includes all wild animals, birds, plants, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and related ecological communities, including the habitat upon which the wildlife depends for its continued viability. See California Fish and Game Code 89.5
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.