Terms Used In Louisiana Codes > Civil Code > PRELIMINARY TITLE > Title IV > Chapter 4 - Vices of Consent

• Abuse: means any of the following acts that seriously endanger the physical, mental, or emotional health, welfare, and safety of the child:

              (a) The infliction or attempted infliction, or, as a result of inadequate supervision, the allowance or toleration of the infliction or attempted infliction of physical or mental injury upon the child by a parent or any other person. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003

• Agency: shall include the Department of Children and Family Services, the corresponding department of any other state, and those private agencies and institutions licensed for the placement of children for adoption by the Department of Children and Family Services or by the corresponding department of any other state. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Child in need of care: means a child adjudicated as such under Title VI. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• Circumstantial evidence: All evidence except eyewitness testimony.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• 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.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Delinquent act: means an act committed by a child of ten years of age or older which if committed by an adult is designated an offense under the statutes or ordinances of this state, or of another state if the offense occurred there, or under federal law, except traffic violations. See Louisiana Children's Code 804
• Department: means the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• 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.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Insanity: means a mental disease or mental illness which renders the child incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong with reference to the conduct in question, as a result of which the child is exempt from criminal responsibility. See Louisiana Children's Code 804
• 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}
• Legatee: A beneficiary of a decedent
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Mental deficiency: means significantly subaverage intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior, as determined by a psychiatrist or psychologist and manifested during the developmental period. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• Mental illness: means a psychiatric disorder which has substantial adverse effects on the parent's ability to function and which requires care and treatment as determined by a psychiatrist or psychologist. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• Neglect: means the refusal or failure of a parent or caretaker to supply the child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, care, treatment, or counseling for any injury, illness, or condition of the child, as a result of which the child's physical, mental, or emotional health, welfare, and safety is substantially threatened or impaired. See Louisiana Children's Code 1003
• 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.
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• 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.
• 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.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• 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.
• 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.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• 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.