Article 1 General Provisions
Article 2 Incorporation
Article 3 Purposes
Article 4 Names
Article 5 Office and Agents
Article 6 Members and Memberships
Article 7 Members Meetings and Voting
Article 8 Directors and Officers
Article 10 Amendment of Articles
Article 11 Merger
Article 12 Sale and Distribution of Assets
Article 13 Prohibited Distributions
Article 14 Dissolution
Article 15 Foreign Corporations
Article 16 Records and Reports
Article 17 Miscellaneous

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Terms Used In South Carolina Code > Title 33 > Chapter 31 - South Carolina Nonprofit Corporation Act

  • Accident and health insurance: means insurance of human beings against death or personal injury by accident, and each insurance of human beings against sickness, ailment, and any type of physical disability resulting from accident or disease, and prepaid dental service, but not including coverages required by the Workers' Compensation Law of this State. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Accommodation bondsman: means a person who has reached the age of eighteen years, is a resident of this State, who, aside from love and affection and release of the person concerned, receives no consideration for action as surety, and who endorses the bail bond after providing satisfactory evidence of ownership, value, and marketability of real property to the extent necessary to reasonably satisfy the official taking bond that the real or personal property will in all respects be sufficient to assure that the full principal sum of the bond will be realized in the event of breach of the conditions of the bond. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Actuary: means a person who is a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries. See South Carolina Code 38-44-20
  • Actuary: means a person who is a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Adjuster: means an individual who determines the extent of insured losses and assists in settling or attempts to settle claims. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • administrator: means any person who collects charges or premiums from, or who adjusts or settles claims on, residents of this State in connection with life or health insurance coverage or annuities other than:

    (1) an employer on behalf of its employees or the employees of one or more subsidiaries or affiliated corporations of an employer;

    (2) a union on behalf of its members;

    (3) an insurer which is either licensed in this State or acting as an insurer with respect to a policy lawfully issued and delivered by it pursuant to the laws of a state in which the insurer was authorized to do insurance business, or a health maintenance organization licensed in this State;

    (4) a life or health agent or broker licensed in this State whose activities are limited exclusively to the sale of insurance;

    (5) a creditor on behalf of its debtors with respect to insurance covering a debt between the creditor and its debtors;

    (6) a trust, its trustees, agents, and employees acting thereunder, established in conformity with 29 U. See South Carolina Code 38-51-10
  • Administrator: means the individual to whom the director has delegated authority to administer the programs of a specific board or of a professional or occupational group for which the department has regulatory authority or has delegated authority to administer the programs of a specific board;

    (2) "Authorization to practice" or "Practice authorization" means the approval to practice the specified profession, engage in the specified occupation, or use a title protected under this article, which has been granted by the applicable board. See South Carolina Code 40-1-20
  • Admitted assets: means assets of an insurer considered admitted on the most recent statutory financial statement of the insurer filed with the department pursuant to § 38-13-80. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Admitted insurer: means an insurer licensed to engage in the business of insurance in this State. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • 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.
  • Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
  • Affiliated group: means any group of entities that are all affiliated. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Alarm business: means an entity that is licensed by the South Carolina Contractor's Licensing Board to engage in the burglar or fire alarm system business, or both. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Alarm technician: means an individual who specializes in any activity or work related to the set up or installation, repair, alteration, or connection of an alarm system to a client's property. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Alien insurer: means an insurer incorporated or organized under the laws of a country other than the United States of America, its states, commonwealths, territories, or insular possessions. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Allegation: something that someone says happened.
  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Annuity: means each contract or agreement to make periodic payments, whether in fixed or variable dollar amounts, or both, at specified intervals. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
  • 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.
  • Appointment: means an individual designated by an official or authorized representative of an authorized insurer to act on its behalf as a producer. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Appraisal: A determination of property value.
  • 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-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
  • 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.
  • Bail bond: means an undertaking by the defendant to appear in court as required upon penalty of forfeiting bail to the State in a stated amount and may include an unsecured appearance bond, a premium-secured appearance bond, an appearance bond secured by a cash deposit of the full amount of the bond, an appearance bond secured by a mortgage, and an appearance bond secured by at least one surety. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Bail bondsman: means a surety bondsman, professional bondsman, or an accommodation bondsman as defined in this chapter. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
  • Basic health insurance plan: means a lower cost health insurance plan developed pursuant to § 38-71-1420. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Bequest: Property gifted by will.
  • Bid: means an offer to furnish labor, equipment or materials, or other services regulated by this chapter. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Board: means the South Carolina Contractor's Licensing Board. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Board: means the board of directors of the program established pursuant to § 38-71-1410. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Burglar alarm system business: means a person, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or other legal entity authorized by law and approved by the board that designs, installs, services, maintains, or alters burglar alarm systems, including burglar alarm systems with an electric fence as defined herein, and heat and smoke sensors installed within a burglar alarm system; a burglar alarm system detects intrusion, burglary, and breaking or entering but does not include home health care signaling devices. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Casualty insurance: means each insurance against legal liability of the insured for bodily injury to or death of another person, including workers' compensation insurance, and for damages to or loss or destruction of the property of another person; medical payments insurance when written in conjunction with insurance covering liability for the deaths or bodily injuries of another person; guaranteeing the fidelity of a person holding a position of public or private trust; loss of or damage to property caused by burglary, theft, larceny, robbery, fraud, or unlawful taking or secretion of property owned by or entrusted to the insured; loss of or damage to property of the insured resulting from the explosion of or damage to a fired or unfired boiler or other pressure vessel, engine, turbine, compressor, pump, wheel, or an apparatus generating, transmitting, or using electric power, and machinery or equipment connected with any of them; loss resulting from nonpayment of debts owed to merchants or another person extending credit. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Certificate: means a renewable certificate of registration granted by the director or his designee to a private review agent, authorizing the agent to perform utilization review activities in this State for two years. See South Carolina Code 38-70-10
  • Claim: means a request from a pharmacy or pharmacist to be reimbursed for the cost of administering, filling, or refilling a prescription for a drug or for providing a medical supply or device. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Claim: means a request from a pharmacy or pharmacist to be reimbursed for the cost of administering, filling, or refilling a prescription for a drug or for providing a medical supply or device. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Claims processing services: means the administrative services performed in connection with the processing and adjudicating of claims relating to pharmacist services that include:

    (a) receiving payments for pharmacist services;

    (b) making payments to pharmacists or pharmacies for pharmacist services; or

    (c) both receiving and making payments. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Claims processing services: means the administrative services performed in connection with the processing and adjudicating of claims relating to pharmacist services that include:

    (a) receiving payments for pharmacist services;

    (b) making payments to pharmacists or pharmacies for pharmacist services; or

    (c) both receiving and making payments. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
  • Coinsurance: means a stipulation or requirement that the insured undertakes to be his own insurer to the extent that he fails to maintain insurance of a given percentage of the value of the property against loss or damage. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Commission: means the part of the premium paid to the producer as compensation for his services. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Committee: means the advisory committee to the commissioner referred to in § 38-71-1420. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • 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: means an entity licensed to engage in the burglar or fire alarm system business. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Control: means :

    (a) the entity directly or indirectly or acting through one or more other persons owns, controls, or has the power to vote twenty-five percent or more of any class of voting securities of the other entity; or

    (b) the entity controls in any manner the election of a majority of the directors or trustees of the other entity. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Controlling person: means a person, a firm, an association, or a corporation who directly or indirectly has power to direct or cause to be directed the management, control, or activities of the reinsurance intermediary. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • cooperative: means a private purchasing cooperative composed of small employers formed under this article. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • 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.
  • Customer service personnel: means an individual working for a licensed alarm entity who provides support for customer problems, complaints, questions, and concerns involving an alarm system. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • 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: means the Department of Insurance of South Carolina. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Department: means the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation;

    (5) "Director" means the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or the director's official designee;

    (6) "Licensee" means a person granted an authorization to practice pursuant to this article and refers to a person holding a license, permit, certification, or registration granted pursuant to this article;

    (7) "Licensing act" means the individual statute or regulations, or both, of each regulated profession or occupation which include, but are not limited to, board governance, the qualifications and requirements for authorization to practice, prohibitions, and disciplinary procedures;

    (8) "Person" means an individual, partnership, or corporation;

    (9) "Profession" or "occupation" means a profession or occupation regulated or administered, or both, by the department pursuant to this article. See South Carolina Code 40-1-20
  • Department: means the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
  • Dependent: means a spouse, an unmarried child under the age of nineteen years, an unmarried child who is a full-time student between the ages of nineteen and twenty-two and who is financially dependent upon the parent, and an unmarried child of any age who is medically certified as disabled and dependent upon the parent. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Designee or deputy director: means the person or persons appointed by the director, serving at the will and pleasure of the director as his designee, to supervise and carry out the functions and duties of the department as provided by law. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Devise: To gift property by will.
  • Director: means the person who is appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate and who is responsible for the operation and management of the department. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Director: means the Director of the Department of Insurance of this State. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Director or his designee: means the director or his designee of the South Carolina Department of Insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-70-10
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Domestic insurer: means an insurer incorporated or organized under the laws of this State. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Donor: The person who makes a gift.
  • Electric fence: means an electrified fence with a height not to exceed ten feet or two feet higher than the perimeter fence, whichever is higher, that is equipped with an energizer, driven by a commercial storage battery that does not exceed twelve volts DC. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Electronic contact: means any transfer of signs, signals, writings, images, sounds, data, intelligence, or information of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by any device, system, or mechanism including, but not limited to, a wire, radio, computer, electromagnetic, photoelectric, or photo-optical system. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • Electronic monitoring: means monitoring a person by the use of a device which records or transmits oral or wire communications or an auditory sound, visual images, or information regarding the person's activities. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Eligible employee: means an employee:

    (a) as defined in § 38-71-710(1) or § 38-71-840(7) who works on a full-time basis and has a normal workweek of thirty or more hours; or

    (b) who is a licensed real estate person engaged in the sale, leasing, or rental of real estate for a licensed real estate broker on a straight commission basis, who has signed a valid independent contractor agreement with the broker who works on a full-time basis and has a normal workweek of thirty or more hours. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Eligible surplus lines insurer: means a nonadmitted insurer with which a licensed broker, or a licensed producer as provided in § 38-45-10(8)(b)(ii), may place surplus lines insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Emergency medical care: means those health care services provided in a hospital emergency facility to evaluate and treat an emergency medical condition. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1520
  • Emergency medical condition: means a medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity, including severe pain, such that a prudent layperson who possesses an average knowledge of health and medicine could reasonably expect the absence of immediate medical attention to result in:

    (a) placing the health of the individual, or with respect to a pregnant woman, the health of the woman or her unborn child, in serious jeopardy;

    (b) serious impairment to bodily functions; or

    (c) serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1520
  • Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
  • Entity: means a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, cooperative, corporation, or other legal entity authorized by law and approved by the board. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • 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
  • Escheat: Reversion of real or personal property to the state when 1) a person dies without leaving a will and has no heirs, or 2) when the property (such as a bank account) has been inactive for a certain period of time. Source: OCC
  • 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.
  • Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
  • Exempt commercial policies: means policies for commercial insureds as may be provided for in regulation issued by the director. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Exempt commercial purchaser: means any person purchasing commercial insurance that, at the time of placement, meets the following requirements:

    (a) the person employs or retains a qualified risk manager to negotiate insurance coverage;

    (b) the person has paid aggregate nationwide commercial property and casualty insurance premiums in excess of one hundred thousand dollars in the immediately preceding twelve months; and

    (c)(i) the person meets at least one of the following criteria:

    (A) the person possesses a net worth in excess of twenty million dollars, as that amount is adjusted pursuant to subsubitem (ii);

    (B) the person generates annual revenues in excess of fifty million dollars, as that amount is adjusted pursuant to subsubitem (ii);

    (C) the person employs more than five hundred full-time or full-time equivalent employees per individual insured or is a member of an affiliated group employing more than one thousand employees in the aggregate;

    (D) the person is a not-for-profit organization or public entity generating annual budgeted expenditures of at least thirty million dollars as that amount is adjusted pursuant to subsubitem (ii); or

    (E) the person is a municipality with a population in excess of fifty thousand persons. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • 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.
  • Family: means a spouse, child, parent, sibling, or a person who regularly resides in the same household as the targeted person. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation: A government corporation that insures the deposits of all national and state banks that are members of the Federal Reserve System. Source: OCC
  • Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. Source: OCC
  • Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
  • Fire alarm system business: means an individual, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or other legal entity authorized by law and approved by the board that designs, installs, services, maintains, or alters fire alarm systems. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Foreign insurer: means an insurer incorporated or organized under the laws of the United States or of any jurisdiction within the United States other than this State. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • 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
  • Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
  • Good cause: means the violation of a specific term of the bail bond not to include the nonpayment of fees. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
  • 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.
  • Harassment in the first degree: means a pattern of intentional, substantial, and unreasonable intrusion into the private life of a targeted person that serves no legitimate purpose and causes the person and would cause a reasonable person in his position to suffer mental or emotional distress. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • Harassment in the second degree: means a pattern of intentional, substantial, and unreasonable intrusion into the private life of a targeted person that serves no legitimate purpose and causes the person and would cause a reasonable person in his position to suffer mental or emotional distress. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • Health benefit plan: means any individual, blanket, or group plan, policy, or contract for health care services issued or delivered by a health care insurer in this State as defined in § 38-71-670(6) and 38-71-840(14), including the state health plan as defined in § 1-11-710. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Health benefit plan: means any individual, blanket, or group plan, policy, or contract for health care services issued or delivered by a health care insurer in this State as defined in § 38-71-670(6) and 38-71-840(14), including the state health plan as defined in § 1-11-710. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • home state: means the home state, as determined pursuant to subitem (a), of the member of the affiliated group that has the largest percentage of premium attributed to it under the insurance contract. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. Source: FDIC
  • Independently procured insurance: means insurance procured directly by an insured from a surplus lines insurer. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Individual: means a natural person. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
  • Installs: means activity or work which involves the set-up, installation, or connection of alarm system equipment in any manner to a client's property. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • insurance: includes annuities. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Insurance agency: means a corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, or other legal entity in which more than one person has a financial interest. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Insurance broker: means a property and casualty insurance producer licensed by the director or his designee who:

    (i) sells, solicits, or negotiates insurance on behalf of an insured;

    (ii) takes or transmits other than for himself an application for insurance or a policy of insurance to or from an insured;

    (iii) advertises or otherwise gives notice that he receives or transmits a surplus lines application or policy;

    (iv) receives or delivers a policy of surplus lines insurance for an insured on behalf of a surplus lines insurer;

    (v) receives, collects, or transmits a premium of surplus lines insurance; or

    (vi) performs another act in the making of a surplus lines insurance contract for or with an insured. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Insurance company: means an "insurer". See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Insurer: means a domestic insurer as defined in § 38-1-20(17). See South Carolina Code 38-44-20
  • Insurer: includes a corporation, fraternal organization, burial association, other association, partnership, society, order, individual, or aggregation of individuals engaging or proposing or attempting to engage as principals in any kind of insurance or surety business, including the exchanging of reciprocal or interinsurance contracts between individuals, partnerships, and corporations. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Insurer: means a corporation, a fraternal organization, a burial association, another association, a partnership, a society, an order, an individual, or an aggregation of individuals engaging or proposing or attempting to engage as principals in any kind of insurance or surety business, including the exchanging of reciprocal or interinsurance contracts between individuals, partnerships, and corporations. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Insurer: means any domestic, foreign, or alien surety company which has qualified generally to transact surety business and specifically to transact bail bond business in this State. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Insurer: means an entity that provides health insurance in this State. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Judgement: The official decision of a court finally determining the respective rights and claims of the parties to a suit.
  • 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.
  • 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
  • Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
  • License: means a document issued by the state's director or his designee authorizing a person to act as an insurance producer for the lines of authority specified in the document. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Licensed producer: means an agent, broker, or reinsurance intermediary licensed pursuant to the applicable provision of the insurance law. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Licensee: means an alarm business that has been issued a license by the board pursuant to this chapter. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Life insurance: means a contract of insurance upon the lives of human beings. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • Managed care organization: means a licensed insurance company, a hospital or medical services plan contract, a health maintenance organization, or any other entity which is subject to regulation by the department and which operates a managed care plan. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1520
  • Managed care plan: means a plan operated by a managed care organization which provides for the financing and delivery of health care and treatment services to individuals enrolled in the plan through its own employed health care providers or contracting with selected specific providers that conform to explicit selection standards, or both. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1520
  • Maximum Allowable Cost List: means a listing of generic drugs used by a pharmacy benefits manager to set the maximum allowable cost at which reimbursement to a pharmacy or pharmacist may be made. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Maximum Allowable Cost List: means a listing of generic drugs used by a pharmacy benefits manager to set the maximum allowable cost at which reimbursement to a pharmacy or pharmacist may be made. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Medical care: means amounts paid for:

    (a) the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease or amounts paid for the purpose of affecting a structure or function of the body;

    (b) amounts paid for transportation primarily for and essential to medical care referred to in subitem (a); and

    (c) amounts paid for insurance covering medical care referred to in subitems (a) and (b). See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Monitoring personnel: means an individual who performs daily office functions, observing the operation and activation of alarm systems from a monitoring station. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
  • motor vehicle physical damage appraiser: means a person, partnership, association, or corporation which practices as a business the appraising of damages to motor vehicles insured under automobile physical damage policies or on behalf of third party claimants. See South Carolina Code 38-49-10
  • Municipal agent: means the Municipal Association of South Carolina or other designated agent of the municipality for the purpose set forth in this chapter. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Negotiate: means the act of conferring directly with or offering advice directly to a purchaser or prospective purchaser of a particular contract of insurance concerning substantive benefits, terms, or conditions of the contract, provided that the person engaged in that act either sells insurance or obtains insurance from insurers for purchasers. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Network plan: means a health insurance plan issued by an insurer under which the financing and delivery of medical care, including items and services paid for as medical care, are provided, in whole or in part, through a defined set of providers under contract with the insurer. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • 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.
  • Nonadmitted insurer: means an insurer not licensed to do an insurance business in this State. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
  • 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.
  • Other prescription drug or device services: means services other than claims processing services, provided directly or indirectly by a pharmacy benefits manager, whether in connection with or separate from claims processing services, including without limitation:

    (a) negotiating rebates, discounts, or other financial incentives and arrangements with drug companies;

    (b) disbursing or distributing rebates;

    (c) managing or participating in incentive programs or arrangements for pharmacist services;

    (d) negotiating or entering into contractual arrangements with pharmacists or pharmacies, or both;

    (e) developing formularies;

    (f) designing prescription benefit programs; or

    (g) advertising or promoting services. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Other prescription drug or device services: means services other than claims processing services, provided directly or indirectly by a pharmacy benefits manager, whether in connection with or separate from claims processing services, including without limitation:

    (a) negotiating rebates, discounts, or other financial incentives and arrangements with drug companies;

    (b) disbursing or distributing rebates;

    (c) managing or participating in incentive programs or arrangements for pharmacist services;

    (d) negotiating or entering into contractual arrangements with pharmacists or pharmacies, or both;

    (e) developing formularies;

    (f) designing prescription benefit programs; or

    (g) advertising or promoting services. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
  • 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.
  • Pattern: means two or more acts occurring over a period of time, however short, evidencing a continuity of purpose. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • person: means any individual, corporation, association, partnership, reciprocal exchange, interinsurer, Lloyd's insurer, fraternal benefit society, and any other legal entity engaged in the business of insurance, including agents, brokers, and adjusters. See South Carolina Code 38-57-20
  • Person: means a corporation, agency, partnership, association, voluntary organization, individual, or another entity, organization, or aggregation of individuals. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Pharmacist services: means products, goods, and services, or any combination of products, goods, and services, provided as a part of the practice of pharmacy. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Pharmacist services: means products, goods, and services, or any combination of products, goods, and services, provided as a part of the practice of pharmacy. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Pharmacy benefits manager: means an entity that contracts with pharmacists or pharmacies on behalf of an insurer, third party administrator, or the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority to:

    (a) process claims for prescription drugs or medical supplies or provide retail network management for pharmacies or pharmacists;

    (b) pay pharmacies or pharmacists for prescription drugs or medical supplies; or

    (c) negotiate rebates with manufacturers for drugs paid for or procured as described in this article. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Pharmacy benefits manager: means an entity that contracts with pharmacists or pharmacies on behalf of an insurer, third party administrator, or the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority to:

    (a) process claims for prescription drugs or medical supplies or provide retail network management for pharmacies or pharmacists;

    (b) pay pharmacies or pharmacists for prescription drugs or medical supplies; or

    (c) negotiate rebates with manufacturers for drugs paid for or procured as described in this article. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Pharmacy benefits manager affiliate: means a pharmacy or pharmacist that directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with a pharmacy benefits manager. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200
  • Pharmacy benefits manager affiliate: means a pharmacy or pharmacist that directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with a pharmacy benefits manager. See South Carolina Code 38-71-2200 v2
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • plan: means any hospital or medical policy or certificate, major medical expense insurance, hospital or medical service plan contract, or health maintenance organization subscriber contract that provides benefits consisting of medical care provided directly through insurance or reimbursement, or otherwise and including items and services paid for medical care. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Plan of operation: means the plan of operation of the program established pursuant to § 38-71-1410. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • 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.
  • Policy: means a contract of insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • 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
  • Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
  • Premium: means payment given in consideration of a contract of insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Premium tax: means , with respect to surplus lines or independently procured insurance coverage, any tax, fee, assessment, or other charge imposed by a governmental entity directly or indirectly based on any payment made as consideration for an insurance contract, including premium deposits, assessments, registration fees, and any other compensation given in consideration for a contract of insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • 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.
  • Primary qualifying party: means a qualifying party who is an owner, partner, or officer of a burglar alarm system business, or a full-time employee holding a managerial or supervisory position within the alarm system business and who qualifies the licensee to engage in the burglar or fire alarm business and is registered as a qualifying party with the department in accordance with this chapter. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Principal: means a defendant or witness obligated to appear in court as required upon penalty of forfeiting bail under a bail bond. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Private review agent: means a person performing utilization reviews who is either under contract with or acting on behalf of, but not employed by:

    (a) a South Carolina business entity;

    (b) the State of South Carolina; or

    (c) a hospital. See South Carolina Code 38-70-10
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • producer: means a person who represents an insurance company and is required to be licensed pursuant to § 38-43-10. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Professional bondsman: means any person who is approved and licensed under the provisions of this chapter and who pledges cash or approved securities with the clerk of court as security for bail bonds written in connection with a judicial proceeding and receives or is promised money or other things of value for the pledge. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Program: means the South Carolina Small Employer Insurer Reinsurance Program pursuant to § 38-71-1410. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Property insurance: means each insurance against direct or indirect loss of or damage to a property resulting from fire, smoke, weather disturbances, climatic conditions, earthquake, volcanic eruption, rising waters, insects, blight, animals, war damage, riot, civil commotion, destruction by order of civil authority to prevent spread of conflagration or for other reason, water damage, vandalism, glass breakage, explosion of a water system, collision, theft of automobiles, and personal effects in them (but no other forms of theft insurance), loss of or damage to domestic or wild animals, and any other perils to property which in the discretion of the director or his designee form proper subjects of property insurance, if not specified in items (1), (7), (11), (35), (40), (54), or (59) of this section. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Proxy voting: The practice of allowing a legislator to cast a vote in committee for an absent legislator.
  • Public adjusting: means investigating, appraising or evaluating, and reporting to an insured in relation to a first party claim arising under insurance contracts, that insure the real or personal property, or both, of the insured. See South Carolina Code 38-48-10
  • Public insurance adjuster: means any individual who, for salary, fee, commission, or other compensation, engages in public adjusting and who is licensed under § 38-48-20. See South Carolina Code 38-48-10
  • Qualified risk manager: means , with respect to a policyholder of commercial insurance, a person who meets all of the following requirements:

    (a) the person is an employee of, or third-party consultant retained by, the commercial policyholder;

    (b) the person provides skilled services in loss prevention, loss reduction, or risk and insurance coverage analysis, and purchase of insurance; and

    (c)(i)(A) the person has a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university in risk management, business administration, finance, economics, or any other field determined by the director or other state regulatory official or entity to demonstrate minimum competence in risk management; and

    (B) has three years of experience in risk financing, claims administration, loss prevention, risk and insurance analysis, or purchasing commercial lines of insurance; or

    (aa) has a designation as a Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) issued by the American Institute for CPCU/Insurance Institute of America;

    (bb) has a designation as an Associate in Risk Management (ARM) issued by the American Institute for CPCU/Insurance Institute of America;

    (cc) has a designation as Certified Risk Manager (CRM) issued by the National Alliance for Insurance Education & Research;

    (dd) has a designation as a RIMS Fellow (RF) issued by the Global Risk Management Institute; or

    (ee) any other designation, certification, or license determined by the director or other state insurance regulatory official or entity to demonstrate minimum competency in risk management;

    (ii)(A) has at least seven years of experience in risk financing, claims administration, loss prevention, risk and insurance coverage analysis, or purchasing commercial lines of insurance; and

    (B) has any one of the designations specified in subitems (c)(i)(B)(aa) through (c)(i)(B)(ee);

    (iii) has at least ten years of experience in risk financing, claims administration, loss prevention, risk and insurance coverage analysis, or purchasing commercial lines of insurance; or

    (iv) has a graduate degree from an accredited college or university in risk management, business administration, finance, economics, or any other field determined by the director or other state regulatory official or entity to demonstrate minimum competence in risk management. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Qualifying party: means an individual, owner, partner, officer, or employee of an alarm system business who has met the necessary requirements of a qualifying party and is registered with the department in accordance with this chapter. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • 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.
  • Recourse: An arrangement in which a bank retains, in form or in substance, any credit risk directly or indirectly associated with an asset it has sold (in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) that exceeds a pro rata share of the bank's claim on the asset. If a bank has no claim on an asset it has sold, then the retention of any credit risk is recourse. Source: FDIC
  • Registered: means an owner, partner, principle officer, qualifying party, or registered employee of an alarm business whose name and address has been listed or registered with the department as an individual who has access to a client's property or burglar alarm records that can reveal, but not be limited to, the type of burglar alarm system, burglar alarm security numbers or code, or any other information pertaining to the system that could compromise the client's burglar alarm system. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Registered employee: means an individual of an alarm system business who has not met the requirements of a qualifying party and is employed more than thirty days in any given calendar year and is registered with the department in accordance with this chapter. See South Carolina Code 40-79-20
  • Reinsurance intermediary: means a reinsurance intermediary-broker or a reinsurance intermediary-manager defined in this section. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Reinsurance intermediary-broker: means a person, other than an officer or employee of the ceding insurer, who solicits, negotiates, or places reinsurance cessions or retrocessions on behalf of a ceding insurer without the authority or power to bind reinsurance on behalf of the insurer. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Reinsurance intermediary-manager: means a person who has authority to bind or manage all or part of the assumed reinsurance business of a reinsurer, including the management of a separate division, department, or underwriting office, and acts as an agent for the reinsurer whether known as a reinsurance intermediary-manager or other similar term. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Reinsurer: means a person, a firm, an association, or a corporation licensed in this State pursuant to the applicable provisions of the insurance law as an insurer with the authority to assume reinsurance. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Reinsuring insurer: means a small employer insurer participating in the reinsurance program pursuant to § 38-71-1410. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • 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.
  • Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
  • Risk-assuming insurer: means a small employer insurer whose application is approved by the commissioner pursuant to § 38-71-1390. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Runner: means a person employed by a bail bondsman for the purpose of assisting the bail bondsman in presenting the defendant in court when required, assisting in the apprehension and surrender of the defendant to the court, keeping the defendant under necessary surveillance, and executing bonds on behalf of the licensed bondsman when the power of attorney has been recorded. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Sell: means to exchange a contract of insurance by any means, for money or its equivalent, on behalf of an insurance company. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • 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.
  • Small employer: means , in connection with a health insurance plan with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association, or employer, as defined in Section 3(5) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, that is actively engaged in business that, on at least fifty percent of its working days during the preceding calendar year, employed no more than fifty eligible employees or employed an average of not more than fifty employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and who employs at least one employee on the first day of the plan year. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Small employer insurer: means an insurer that offers health insurance plans covering eligible employees of one or more small employers in this State. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • Solicit: means attempting to sell insurance or asking or urging a person to apply for a particular kind of insurance from a particular company. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Stalking: means a pattern of words, whether verbal, written, or electronic, or a pattern of conduct that serves no legitimate purpose and is intended to cause and does cause a targeted person and would cause a reasonable person in the targeted person's position to fear:

    (1) death of the person or a member of his family;

    (2) assault upon the person or a member of his family;

    (3) bodily injury to the person or a member of his family;

    (4) criminal sexual contact on the person or a member of his family;

    (5) kidnapping of the person or a member of his family; or

    (6) damage to the property of the person or a member of his family. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1700
  • Standard health insurance plan: means a health insurance plan developed pursuant to § 38-71-1420. See South Carolina Code 38-71-1330
  • State: includes any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands, and American Samoa. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
  • Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
  • Surety: includes insurance or a bond that covers obligations to pay the debts, or answer for the default, of another, including faithlessness in a position of public or private trust. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Surety: means one who, with the defendant, is liable for the amount of the bail bond upon forfeiture of bail. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Surety bondsman: means any person who is approved by and licensed by the director or his designee as an insurance agent, appointed by an insurer by power of attorney to execute or countersign bail bonds for the insurer in connection with judicial proceedings, and receives or is promised money or other things of value for the execution or countersignature. See South Carolina Code 38-53-10
  • Surplus lines insurance: means any property and casualty insurance permitted to be placed directly or through a surplus lines broker, or an insurance producer as provided in subitem (b)(ii), with a surplus lines insurer eligible to accept the insurance as defined in § 38-1-20(56). See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Surplus lines insurer: means an insurer not licensed to engage in the business of insurance in this State, but does not include a risk retention group, as that term is defined in Section 2(a)(4) of the Liability Risk Retention Act of 1986 (15 U. See South Carolina Code 38-45-10
  • Temporary restraining order: Prohibits a person from an action that is likely to cause irreparable harm. This differs from an injunction in that it may be granted immediately, without notice to the opposing party, and without a hearing. It is intended to last only until a hearing can be held.
  • Terminate: means the cancellation of the relationship between an insurance producer and the insurer or the termination of a producer's authority to transact insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Testify: Answer questions in court.
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
  • Title insurance: means insurance of the owners of real property and other persons lawfully interested in the title insurance against loss by reason of defective titles and undisclosed liens and encumbrances affecting the property. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • To be in violation: means that the reinsurance intermediary, insurer, or reinsurer for whom the reinsurance intermediary was acting failed to comply substantially with this chapter. See South Carolina Code 38-46-20
  • Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
  • 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.
  • Uphold: The decision of an appellate court not to reverse a lower court decision.
  • Utilization review: means a system for reviewing the necessary, appropriate, and efficient allocation of health care resources and services given or proposed to be given to a patient or group of patients. See South Carolina Code 38-70-10
  • Utilization review program: means an overview of the activities performed by the private review agent. See South Carolina Code 38-70-10
  • Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
  • Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
  • Victim: means a person who suffers direct or threatened physical, emotional, or financial harm as the result of an act by someone else, which is a crime. See South Carolina Code 16-3-1610