Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes 547-C:2

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • person: may extend and be applied to bodies corporate and politic as well as to individuals. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:9
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • petition: when used in connection with the equity jurisdiction of the superior court, and referring to a document filed with the court, shall mean complaint, and "petitioner" shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
  • petitioner: shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
  • Probate: Proving a will
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
A petition may be filed by such person in the superior or probate court in the county in which the property or any part of the property lies or is then located, particularly describing the property, the names of all owners or persons interested, if known, and the share or interest of the petitioner in the property and praying for partition or division of the property; provided, however, where there is a related pending matter in either court, jurisdiction for the related partition action shall lie with the court having jurisdiction over the underlying matter; and provided further that in any such case where the right to a trial by jury is guaranteed by the constitution and is claimed by any party, jurisdiction shall lie exclusively in the superior court. Upon petition or upon its own motion, the court may cause any property to be partitioned or divided and awarded or assigned in accordance with procedures described in this chapter. Nothing in this chapter is intended to abrogate common law or statutory authority of the superior and district courts to adjudicate issues of personal property between parties engaged in litigation before those courts.