Terms Used In Louisiana Codes > Children's Code > Title VI > Chapter 8 - Petitions; Service; Summons

• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Child: means a person under eighteen years of age who, prior to juvenile proceedings, has not been judicially emancipated under Civil Code Article 366 or emancipated by marriage under Civil Code Article 367. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the Department of Children and Family Services. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• 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.
• Foster care: means placement in a foster family home, a relative's home, a residential child caring facility, or other living arrangement approved and supervised by the state for provision of substitute care for a child in the department's custody. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• Other suitable individual: means a person with whom the child enjoys a close, established, significant relationship, yet not a blood relative, including a neighbor, godparent, teacher, or close friend of the parent. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• 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: means any individual, partnership, association, agency, or corporation, and specifically shall include city, parish, or state law enforcement agencies, and a parish or city school board or a person employed by a parish or city school board. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Probate: Proving a will
• Relative: means an individual with whom the child has established a significant relationship by blood, adoption, or affinity. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Safety plan: means a plan for the purpose of assuring a child's health, welfare, and safety by imposing conditions for the child to safely remain in the home, or, after a child has been removed from the home, for the continued placement of the child with a custodian and terms for contact between the child and the child's parents or other persons. See Louisiana Children's Code 603
• Testate: To die leaving a will.