Terms Used In Iowa Code > Chapter 645 - Recovery of Merchandise or Damages

• Child: includes child by adoption. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mercantile establishment: includes any place where merchandise is displayed, held, or offered for sale, either retail or wholesale. See Iowa Code 645.1
• Merchandise: includes any object, ware, good, commodity, or other similar item displayed or offered for sale. See Iowa Code 645.1
• Owner: means an owner of a mercantile establishment and includes a designated representative of the owner. See Iowa Code 645.1
• person: means individual, corporation, limited liability company, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership or association, or any other legal entity. See Iowa Code 4.1
• 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.
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.