Terms Used In Florida Statutes > Chapter 732 > Part VI - Rules of Construction

• 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}
• clearinghouse: means the entity within the Institute for Family Violence Studies in the School of Social Work of the Florida State University, which serves as a statewide resource on supervised visitation issues by providing technical assistance, training, and research. See Florida Statutes 753.01
• Concurrent custody: means that an eligible extended family member is awarded custodial rights to care for a child concurrently with the child's parent or parents. See Florida Statutes 751.011
• Department: means the Department of Children and Families. See Florida Statutes 753.01
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Donee: The recipient of a gift.
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• 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.
• Exchange monitoring: means supervision of movement of a child from one parent to the other parent at the start of the visit and back to the first parent at the end of the visit. See Florida Statutes 753.01
• Extended family member: means a person who is:
  (a) A relative of a minor child within the third degree by blood or marriage to the parent;
  (b) The stepparent of a minor child if the stepparent is currently married to the parent of the child and is not a party in a pending dissolution, separate maintenance, domestic violence, or other civil or criminal proceeding in any court of competent jurisdiction involving one or both of the child's parents as an adverse party; or
  (c) An individual who qualifies as "fictive kin" as defined in…. See Florida Statutes 751.011
• Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grandparent: shall include great-grandparent. See Florida Statutes 752.001
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• 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.
• minor: includes any person who has not attained the age of 18 years. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Missing: means having whereabouts which are unknown for a period of at least 90 days and not being able to be located after a diligent search and inquiry. See Florida Statutes 752.001
• 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.
• Per stirpes: The legal means by which the children of a decedent, upon the death of an ancestor at a level above that of the decedent, receive by right of representation the share of the ancestor
• person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Preliminary hearing: A hearing where the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to make the defendant have a trial.
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Testator: A male person who leaves a will at death.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• 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.
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01