Terms Used In Michigan Laws > Chapter 700 > Act 386 of 1998 > Article III > Part 6 - Personal Representative and Appointment, Control, and Termination of Authority

• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Application: means a written request to the probate register for an order of informal probate or informal appointment under part 3 of article III. See Michigan Laws 700.1103
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Arraignment: A proceeding in which an individual who is accused of committing a crime is brought into court, told of the charges, and asked to plead guilty or not guilty.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attorney: means , if appointed to represent a child under the provisions referenced in section 5213, an attorney serving as the child's legal advocate in the manner defined and described in section 13a of chapter XIIA of the probate code of 1939, 1939 PA 288, MCL 712A. See Michigan Laws 700.1103
• Borrower: means a public corporation exercising the power to issue bonds as provided in this act or a county treasurer exercising the power to issue notes as provided in this act. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Claim: includes , but is not limited to, in respect to a decedent's or protected individual's estate, a liability of the decedent or protected individual, whether arising in contract, tort, or otherwise, and a liability of the estate that arises at or after the decedent's death or after a conservator's appointment, including funeral and burial expenses and costs and expenses of administration. See Michigan Laws 700.1103
• Conservator: means a person appointed by a court to manage a protected individual's estate. See Michigan Laws 700.1103
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal 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.
• costs: means the costs of purchasing, acquiring, constructing, improving, enlarging, extending, or repairing a public improvement, including any engineering, architectural, legal, accounting, financial, and other expenses incident to the public improvement. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• County treasurer: means an elected county treasurer or a county treasurer appointed under section 5 of 1923 PA 199, MCL 201. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Court: means the probate court or, when applicable, the family division of circuit court. See Michigan Laws 700.1103
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Delinquent tax revenues: means the delinquent taxes, interest, penalties and fees, and chargebacks of uncollected delinquent taxes due or to become due to local units of government to be collected by a county treasurer as agent for the local unit of government in connection with a delinquent tax system and pledged to any borrowing by a county treasurer under section 7b. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• Estate: includes the property of the decedent, trust, or other person whose affairs are subject to this act as the property is originally constituted and as it exists throughout administration. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• 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.
• 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.
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fiduciary: includes , but is not limited to, a personal representative, funeral representative, guardian, conservator, trustee, plenary guardian, partial guardian, and successor fiduciary. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• Financial institution: means an organization authorized to do business under state or federal laws relating to a financial institution and includes, but is not limited to, a bank, trust company, savings bank, building and loan association, savings and loan company or association, credit union, insurance company, and entity that offers mutual fund, securities brokerage, money market, or retail investment accounts. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• firearm: except as otherwise specifically defined in statute, includes any weapon which will, is designed to, or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by action of an explosive. See Michigan Laws 8.3t
• Formal proceedings: means proceedings conducted before a judge with notice to interested persons. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. ^{Source: OCC}
• General personal representative: means a personal representative other than a special personal representative. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• Governing body: means for a county, the board of commissioners; for a city, the body having legislative powers; for a village, the body having legislative powers; for a township, the township board; for a school district, the board of education; for a port district, the port commission; for a metropolitan district, the legislative body of the district; for a municipal health facilities corporation, the board of trustees; for a nonprofit subsidiary municipal health facilities corporation, the nonprofit subsidiary board; and for an authority, the body in which is lodged general governing powers. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Hazardous substance: means a substance defined as hazardous or toxic or otherwise regulated by an environmental law. See Michigan Laws 700.1104
• in writing: shall be construed to include printing, engraving, and lithographing; except that if the written signature of a person is required by law, the signature shall be the proper handwriting of the person or, if the person is unable to write, the person's proper mark, which may be, unless otherwise expressly prohibited by law, a clear and classifiable fingerprint of the person made with ink or another substance. See Michigan Laws 8.3q
• Informal proceedings: means proceedings for probate of a will or appointment of a personal representative conducted by the probate register without notice to interested persons. See Michigan Laws 700.1105
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Letters: includes , but is not limited to, letters testamentary, letters of guardianship, letters of administration, and letters of conservatorship. See Michigan Laws 700.1105
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Net revenues: means the revenues of a public improvement remaining after deducting the reasonable expenses of administration, operation, and maintenance of the public improvement. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• 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.
• 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.
• Order: means the legislative enactment of a county treasurer's powers under this act. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Ordinance: means an ordinance, resolution, or other appropriate legislative enactment of the governing body of a public corporation. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Person: means an individual or an organization. See Michigan Laws 700.1106
• person: may extend and be applied to bodies politic and corporate, as well as to individuals. See Michigan Laws 8.3l
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Personal representative: includes , but is not limited to, an executor, administrator, successor personal representative, and special personal representative, and any other person, other than a trustee of a trust subject to article VII, who performs substantially the same function under the law governing that person's status. See Michigan Laws 700.1106
• Petition: means a written request to the court for an order after notice. See Michigan Laws 700.1106
• 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.
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Proceeding: includes an application and a petition, and may be an action at law or a suit in equity. See Michigan Laws 700.1106
• Property: means anything that may be the subject of ownership, and includes both real and personal property or an interest in real or personal property. See Michigan Laws 700.1106
• Public corporation: means a county, city, village, township, school district, port district, or metropolitan district of the state or a combination of these if authorized by law to act jointly; an authority created by or under an act of the legislature; or a municipal health facilities corporation or subsidiary municipal health facilities corporation incorporated as provided in the municipal health facilities corporations act, 1987 PA 230, MCL 331. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• public improvement: means the whole or a part of any of these improvements or of any combination of these improvements or any interest or participation in these improvements, as determined by the governing body. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Public improvements: means only the following improvements: housing facilities; garbage disposal plants; rubbish disposal plants; incinerators; transportation systems, including plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with those systems; sewage disposal systems, including sanitary sewers, combined sanitary and storm sewers, plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with the collection, treatment, or disposal of sewage or industrial wastes; storm water systems, including storm sewers, plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with the collection, treatment, or disposal of storm water; water supply systems, including plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with obtaining a water supply, the treatment of water, or the distribution of water; utility systems for supplying light, heat, or power, including plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with those systems; approved cable television systems, approved cable communication systems, or telephone systems, including plants, works, instrumentalities, and properties used or useful in connection with those systems; automobile parking facilities, including within or as part of the facilities areas or buildings that may be rented or leased to private enterprises serving the public; yacht basins; harbors; docks; wharves; terminal facilities; elevated highways; bridges over, tunnels under, and ferries across bodies of water; community buildings; public wholesale markets for farm and food products; stadiums; convention halls; auditoriums; dormitories; hospitals and other health care facilities; buildings devoted to public use; museums; parks; recreational facilities; reforestation projects; aeronautical facilities; and marine railways; or any right or interest in or equipment for these improvements. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Rates: means the charges, fees, rentals, and rates that may be fixed and imposed for the services, facilities, and commodities furnished by a public improvement. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Revenues: means the income derived from the rates charged for the services, facilities, and commodities furnished by a public improvement. See Michigan Laws 141.103
• Security: includes , but is not limited to, a note, stock, treasury stock, bond, debenture, evidence of indebtedness, certificate of interest or participation in an oil, gas, or mining title or lease or in payments out of production under such a title or lease, collateral trust certificate, transferable share, voting trust certificate, or interest in a regulated investment company or other entity generally referred to as a mutual fund or, in general, an interest or instrument commonly known as a security, or a certificate of interest or participation for, a temporary or interim certificate, receipt, or certificate of deposit for, or any warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase any of the items listed in this subdivision. See Michigan Laws 700.1107
• Special personal representative: means a personal representative as described by section 3614 to 3618. See Michigan Laws 700.1107
• state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories belonging to the United States; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the district and territories. See Michigan Laws 8.3o
• State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Michigan Laws 700.1107
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Successor: means a person, other than a creditor, who is entitled to property of a decedent under the decedent's will or this act. See Michigan Laws 700.1107
• Successor personal representative: means a personal representative, other than a special personal representative, who is appointed to succeed a previously appointed personal representative. See Michigan Laws 700.1107
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. ^{Source: OCC}
• United States: shall be construed to include the district and territories. See Michigan Laws 8.3o
• Veto: The procedure established under the Constitution by which the President/Governor refuses to approve a bill or joint resolution and thus prevents its enactment into law. A regular veto occurs when the President/Governor returns the legislation to the house in which it originated. The President/Governor usually returns a vetoed bill with a message indicating his reasons for rejecting the measure. In Congress, the veto can be overridden only by a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and the House.
• Ward: means an individual for whom a guardian is appointed. See Michigan Laws 700.1108