Terms Used In Maine Revised Statutes > Title 19-A > Part 3 > Chapter 51 - General Provisions

• Allocated parental rights and responsibilities: means that responsibilities for the various aspects of a child's welfare are divided between the parents, with the parent allocated a particular responsibility having the right to control that aspect of the child's welfare. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• 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 support: means money paid directly to a parent, to another person or agency awarded parental rights and responsibilities with respect to a child or to the department on behalf of a child receiving public assistance and medical or dental insurance coverage provided on behalf of a child pursuant to court order. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the 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.
• Cost of private health insurance: means the cost of adding the child to existing coverage or the difference between self-only and family coverage, unless that cost is determined to be unjust by a court or the Department of Health and Human Services. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• 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.
• Department: means the Department of Health and Human Services and its agents and authorized representatives. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Domestic abuse: means abuse as defined in section 4002. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• lands: includes lands and all tenements and hereditaments connected therewith, and all rights thereto and interests therein. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
• Medical support: means an amount ordered to be paid toward the cost of health insurance provided by a public entity or by another parent through employment or otherwise or for other medical costs not covered by insurance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• minor child: means a person who has not attained the age of 18 years. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Obligee: means any person to whom a duty of support is owed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Obligor: means any person owing a duty of support. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Parent: means the legal parent or the legal guardian when no legal parent exists. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Person: means an individual, trust, estate, partnership, association, company, corporation, political subdivision of the State, instrumentality of the State or other entity. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• 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.
• Private health insurance: means fee-for-service, health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization and other types of coverage available to either parent under which medical services could be provided to a child. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• Reasonable cost: means the cost of private health insurance to the parent responsible for providing medical support that does not exceed amounts adopted by the Department of Health and Human Services in a rule implementing a cost-reasonableness standard. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Shared parental rights and responsibilities: means that most or all aspects of a child's welfare remain the joint responsibility and right of both parents, so that both parents retain equal parental rights and responsibilities, and both parents confer and make joint decisions regarding the child's welfare. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• Sole parental rights and responsibilities: means that one parent is granted exclusive parental rights and responsibilities with respect to all aspects of a child's welfare, with the possible exception of the right and responsibility for support. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 1501
• state: means any state, territory or possession of the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 19-A Sec. 101
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.