Terms Used In New York Laws > Public Authorities > Article 5 > Title 8-A - New York State Local Water and Sewer Authority Act

• Acquittal:
  1. Judgement that a criminal defendant has not been proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
  2. A verdict of "not guilty."
   
• Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
• Agency: means the Adirondack park agency created by section eight hundred three of this article. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• 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
• Approved local land use program: means any local land use program approved by the agency under section eight hundred seven. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• 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.
• 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.
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contractor: shall mean an individual, a business enterprise, including a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a corporation, a not-for-profit corporation, or any other party to a state contract, or a bidder in conjunction with the award of a state contract or a proposed party to a state contract. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• 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.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: shall mean the department of labor. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• Development considerations: means the development considerations of the land use and development plan contained in subdivision four of section eight hundred five. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Director: shall mean the director of the division of minority and women's business development. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Disparity study: shall mean the most recent study of disparities between the utilization of minority group members and women in the performance of state contracts and the availability of minority group members and women to perform such work by the director pursuant to article fifteen-A of this chapter. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• Division: shall mean the department of economic development's division of minority and women's business development. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• 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}
• 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.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Fee simple: Absolute title to property with no limitations or restrictions regarding the person who may inherit it.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• 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.
• Land: means the earth, on or below the surface of the ground, including water and air above, the flora and fauna. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• 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}
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Local government: means any city, town or village whose boundaries lie wholly or partly within the Adirondack park, except that such term shall not include in the case of a town that portion thereof within any incorporated village. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Local land use program: means any comprehensive land use and development planning and control program undertaken by a local government that includes local land use controls, such as zoning and subdivision regulations and a sanitary code, and governs land use and development and subdivision of land within the entire jurisdiction of the local government. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Master plan for management of state lands: means the master plan for management of state lands referred to in section eight hundred sixteen. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Municipality: means any municipal corporation, district corporation or public benefit corporation as such terms are defined in § 3 of the general corporation law, and any agency or instrumentality of the foregoing, except that the term public benefit corporation shall not include any such corporation any member of which is appointed by the governor. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• new land use: means any land use or development that is not a preexisting use. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• park: means land lying within the area described in subdivision one of section 9-0101 of the environmental conservation law including any future amendments thereto. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• 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, corporation, partnership, association, trustee, municipality or other legal entity, but shall not include the state or any state agency. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• plan: means the Adirondack park land use and development plan prepared by the Adirondack park agency as directed by law, approved by the agency on March three, nineteen hundred seventy-three, adopted in subdivision one of section eight hundred five, including the plan map, and any amendments thereto, the provisions of the plan as contained in subdivisions three and four of section eight hundred five and sometimes referred to as the "provisions of the plan" and any amendments thereto, and the shoreline restrictions contained in section eight hundred six, and any amendments thereto. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Project: means any new land use and development or subdivision of land that is subject to the review jurisdiction of either the agency or local government under this article. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Project sponsor: means any person making application to the agency, or a local government for the review of a project. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Public defender: Represent defendants who can't afford an attorney in criminal matters.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• 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.
• Shoreline: means that line at which land adjoins the waters of lakes, ponds, rivers and streams within the Adirondack park at mean high water. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Shoreline restrictions: means those restrictions upon land use and development or subdivisions of land as contained in section eight hundred six. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• State: means the state of New York. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• State agency: means any department, bureau, commission, board or other agency of the state, including any public benefit corporation any member of which is appointed by the governor. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• State agency: shall mean (a)(i) any state department, or (ii) any division, board, commission or bureau of any state department, or (iii) the state university of New York and the city university of New York, including all their constituent units except community colleges and the independent institutions operating statutory or contract colleges on behalf of the state, or (iv) a board, a majority of whose members are appointed by the governor or who serve by virtue of being state officers or employees as defined in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) of paragraph (i) of subdivision one of § 73 of the public officers law. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• State contract: shall mean : (a) a written agreement in excess of one hundred thousand dollars whereby a state agency is committed to expend or does expend funds for the acquisition, construction, demolition, replacement, major repair or renovation of real property and improvements thereon; and (b) a written agreement in excess of one hundred thousand dollars whereby the owner of a state assisted housing project is committed to expend or does expend funds for the acquisition, construction, demolition, replacement, major repair or renovation of real property and improvements thereon for such project. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Structure: means any object constructed, installed or placed on land to facilitate land use and development or subdivision of land, such as buildings, sheds, single family dwellings, mobile homes, signs, tanks, fences and poles and any fixtures, additions and alterations thereto. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Subcontractor: shall mean any individual or business enterprise that provides goods or services to any individual or business for use in the performance of a state contract, whether or not such goods or services are provided to a party to a state contract. See N.Y. Executive Law 821
• subdivision: means any division of land into two or more lots, parcels or sites, whether adjoining or not, for the purpose of sale, lease, license or any form of separate ownership or occupancy (including any grading, road construction, installation of utilities or other improvements or any other land use and development preparatory or incidental to any such division) by any person or by any other person controlled by, under common control with or controlling such person or by any group of persons acting in concert as part of a common scheme or plan. See N.Y. Executive Law 802
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• 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.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• 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}
• use: means any construction or other activity which materially changes the use or appearance of land or a structure or the intensity of the use of land or a structure. See N.Y. Executive Law 802