Chapter 1 Reference by Courts of This State
Chapter 2 References in Federal Courts
Chapter 2.5 Adjudications to Protect the Quality of Ground Water
Chapter 3 Statutory Adjudications
Chapter 4 Modification of Decrees

Terms Used In California Codes > Water Code > Division 2 > Part 3 - DETERMINATION OF WATER RIGHTS

  • Abstract of judgment: In a federal criminal proceeding, A certification from a U.S. District Court clerk that a judgment of restitution was entered against the defendant owing to the victim. If the defendant inherits, owns, or sells real property or holdings, these assets can then be attached at the state and local levels as well.
  • Act: means the California School Finance Authority Act. See California Education Code 17173
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
  • Appraisal: A determination of property value.
  • 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
  • Assessee: means the person to whom property or a tax is assessed. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 23
  • Associate: when used with respect to a licensee, means all of the following:

    California Corporations Code 28820

  • Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
  • Authority: means the California School Finance Authority, or any board, body, commission, department, or officer succeeding to the principal functions of the authority, or to which the powers conferred upon the authority by this chapter shall be given by law. See California Education Code 17173
  • 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.
  • Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
  • 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
  • board: means the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 20
  • City: includes city and county and "incorporated town" but does not include "unincorporated town" or "village. See California Public Utilities Code 19
  • City: includes incorporated city, city and county, municipal corporation, municipality, town, and incorporated town. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 14
  • Classification: means that each position in the classified service shall have a designated title, a regular minimum number of assigned hours per day, days per week, and months per year, a specific statement of the duties required to be performed by the employees in each such position, and the regular monthly salary ranges for each such position. See California Education Code 45101
  • Close relative: means ancestor, lineal descendant, brother or sister and lineal descendants of either, spouse, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, brother-in-law, daughter-in-law, or sister-in-law. See California Corporations Code 28820
  • Commission: means the Public Utilities Commission created by §. See California Public Utilities Code 20
  • commissioner: means a member of the commission. See California Public Utilities Code 20
  • Common board: as used in this article means a board with identical members that governs more than one school district. See California Education Code 45220
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
  • contractor: means a public agency or a private nonprofit corporation. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 11000.5
  • Controller: means the State Controller. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 21
  • 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.
  • County: includes city and county. See California Water Code 14
  • County: includes "city and county. See California Welfare and Institutions Code 14
  • County: includes "city and county. See California Corporations Code 14
  • County: includes city and county. See California Public Utilities Code 18
  • County: includes city and county. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 15
  • County: includes city and county. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 14
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Decedent: A deceased person.
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Demotion: means assignment to an inferior position or status, without the employee's written voluntary consent. See California Education Code 45101
  • department: means the State Department of Health Services. See California Welfare and Institutions Code 14062
  • Department: means the Employment Development Department. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
  • Devise: To gift property by will.
  • Disciplinary action: includes any action whereby an employee is deprived of any classification or any incident of any classification in which he has permanence, including dismissal, suspension, demotion, or any reassignment, without his voluntary consent, except a layoff for lack of work or lack of funds. See California Education Code 45101
  • 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:
  • Donor: The person who makes a gift.
  • eligible employer: means any employer subject to Part 1 (commencing with Section 100) of Division 1, except any public entity, or any nonprofit organization which has elected an alternate method of financing its liability for unemployment insurance compensation benefits pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 801), or Article 6 (commencing with Section 821) of Chapter 3. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Eligible participant: means any person who, prior to beginning training or employment pursuant to this chapter, is any of the following:

    California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201

  • 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
  • Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
  • 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.
  • Executive director: means the executive director appointed pursuant to Section 10202. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
  • 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.
  • Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • Fund: means the Employment Training Fund created by Section 1610. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
  • 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.
  • Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
  • Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. Source: OCC
  • Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
  • Job: means employment on a basis customarily considered full time for the occupation and industry. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Joint tenancy: A form of property ownership in which two or more parties hold an undivided interest in the same property that was conveyed under the same instrument at the same time. A joint tenant can sell his (her) interest but not dispose of it by will. Upon the death of a joint tenant, his (her) undivided interest is distributed among the surviving joint tenants.
  • 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.
  • Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
  • 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
  • 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.
  • Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
  • Lineal descendant: Direct descendant of the same ancestors.
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • Medi-Cal: means the California Medical Assistance Program. See California Welfare and Institutions Code 14063
  • minor quantities of water: refers to the diversion or extraction by any person of not to exceed 10 acre-feet of water annually. See California Water Code 2503
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • New hire training: means employment training, including job-related literacy training, including soft skills, for persons who, at the start of training, are unemployed. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
  • Panel: means the Employment Training Panel created by Section 10202. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • 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.
  • partnership: shall include limited liability company, registered limited liability partnership, and foreign limited liability partnership, except where the context or the specific provisions of this division otherwise require. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 28.5
  • permanent employee: includes tenure in the classification in which the employee passed the required probationary period, and includes all of the incidents of that classification. See California Education Code 45101
  • Person: means any person, firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, limited liability company, or company. See California Water Code 19
  • Person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See California Corporations Code 18
  • Person: includes any person, firm, partnership, general partner of a partnership, limited liability company, registered limited liability partnership, foreign limited liability partnership, association, corporation, company, syndicate, estate, trust, business trust, or organization of any kind. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 19
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
  • Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
  • Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
  • Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
  • Retraining: means employment-related skills and literacy training, including soft skills, for persons who are employed and who meet the definition of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) prior to commencement of training and will continue to be employed by the same employer for at least 90 days following completion of training. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Revocable trust: A trust agreement that can be canceled, rescinded, revoked, or repealed by the grantor (person who establishes the trust).
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • 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.
  • Soft skills: means behaviors and competencies to allow people to navigate professional environments, work well with colleagues, and perform up to standards for professional success, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

    California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201

  • Spouse: includes "registered domestic partner" as required by §. See California Corporations Code 12.2
  • Spouse: includes "registered domestic partner" as required by §. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 12.2
  • Spouse: includes "registered domestic partner" as required by §. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 11.2
  • State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Water 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 Public Utilities Code 17
  • State average hourly wage: means the average weekly wage paid by employers to employees covered by unemployment insurance, as reported to the Employment Development Department for the four calendar quarters ending June 30 of the preceding calendar year, divided by 40 hours. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
  • stream system: includes stream, lake, or other body of water, and tributaries and contributory sources, but does not include an underground water supply other than a subterranean stream flowing through known and definite channels. See California Water Code 2500
  • Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Public Utilities Code 10
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
  • Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
  • Tenancy in common: A type of property ownership in which two or more individuals have an undivided interest in property. At the death of one tenant in common, his (her) fractional percentage of ownership in the property passes to the decedent
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
  • Trainee: means an eligible participant. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • Training agency: means any private training entity or local educational agency. See California Unemployment Insurance Code 10201
  • 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.
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
  • Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. Source: OCC
  • 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.
  • water: includes the term "use of water. See California Water Code 1000
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.