Terms Used In California Codes > Insurance Code > Division 1 > Part 1 > Chapter 4 > Article 1 - Definition and Scope

• 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}
• City: includes "city and county" and "incorporated town" but does not include "unincorporated town" or "village. See California Government Code 20
• Commissioner: means the Insurance Commissioner of this State. See California Insurance Code 20
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• 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
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Domestic: means organized under the laws of this State, whether or not admitted. See California Insurance Code 26
• 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.
• Foreign: means not organized under the laws of this State, whether or not admitted. See California Insurance Code 27
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Insurance agent: means a person authorized, by and on behalf of an insurer, to transact all classes of insurance other than life, disability, or health insurance, on behalf of an admitted insurance company. See California Insurance Code 31
• 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.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Mortgagor: The person who pledges property to a creditor as collateral for a loan and who receives the money.
• 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: means any person, association, organization, partnership, business trust, limited liability company, or corporation. See California Insurance Code 19
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• 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
• Spouse: includes "registered domestic partner" as required by §. See California Insurance Code 12.2
• 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 Insurance Code 28
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which the term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Government Code 10
• Surplus line broker: means a person licensed under Section 1765 and authorized to do business under Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 1760) of Part 2 of Division 1. See California Insurance Code 47
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.