Terms Used In Vermont Statutes > Title 9 > Chapter 63 > Subchapter 1 - General Provisions

• 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.
• Antique: means an item, other than an item of jewelry, and including a collectible coin, that is:

• 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.
• 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.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• 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.
• Billing period: means the period agreed to by the parties or, in the absence of an agreement, the calendar month within which work is performed. See
• Business day: means any calendar day except Saturday, Sunday, or any day classified as a holiday under 1 V. See
• Civil forfeiture: The loss of ownership of property used to conduct illegal activity.
• Collusion: means an agreement, contract, combination in the form of trusts or otherwise, or conspiracy to engage in price fixing, bid rigging, or market division or allocation of goods or services between or among persons. See
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Construction contract: means any agreement, whether written or oral, to perform work on any real property located within the State of Vermont. See
• Consumer: means any person who purchases, leases, contracts for, or otherwise agrees to pay consideration for goods or services not for resale in the ordinary course of the person's trade or business but for the person's use or benefit or the use or benefit of a member of the person's household, or in connection with the operation of the person's household or a farm whether or not the farm is conducted as a trade or business, or a person who purchases, leases, contracts for, or otherwise agrees to pay consideration for goods or services not for resale in the ordinary course of the person's trade or business but for the use or benefit of the person's business or in connection with the operation of the person's business. See
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contractor: means a person or entity that contracts with an owner to perform work, or provide materials or machinery necessary to perform work on real property. See
• 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.
• Criminal history record: means all information documenting a natural person's contact with the criminal justice system, including data regarding identification, arrest or citation, arraignment, judicial disposition, custody, and supervision. See
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Default: means the violation or failure to perform a duty or obligation created in this chapter or in a rental agreement. See
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Delivery: means receipt by addressee, including first-class, registered, or certified mail, hand delivered or transmitted by facsimile machine. See
• Disqualifying offense: means :

• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Domestic: when applied to a corporation, company, association, or copartnership shall mean organized under the laws of this State; "foreign" when so applied, shall mean organized under the laws of another state, government, or country. See
• Electronic funds transfer: The transfer of money between accounts by consumer electronic systems-such as automated teller machines (ATMs) and electronic payment of bills-rather than by check or cash. (Wire transfers, checks, drafts, and paper instruments do not fall into this category.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Electronic mail: means the transmission of information through computer or other electronic means or a communication sent to a person identified by a unique electronic address. See
• Engaged in the business of purchasing or selling precious metal: means conducting a regular course of trade in precious metal with retail buyers or sellers, and does not include:

• 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.
• 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 Credit Reporting Act: A federal law, established in 1971 and revised in 1997, that gives consumers the right to see their credit records and correct any mistakes. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fees: shall mean earnings due for official services, aside from salaries or per diem compensation. See
• following: when used by way of reference to a section of the law shall mean the next preceding or following section. See
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Home solicitation sale: means the sale or lease, or the offer for sale or lease, of goods or services with a purchase price of $5. See
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• 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.
• Justice: when applied to a person, other than a Justice of the Supreme Court, shall mean a justice of the peace for the county for which he or she is elected or appointed. See
• Last known address: means the mailing address, and the e-mail address if applicable, provided by the occupant in a rental agreement or in a subsequent written notice of a change of address. See
• Late fee: means a fee or charge assessed for an occupant's failure to pay rent or other fees, charges, or expenses when due. See
• 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}
• Lessor: means a person engaged in a business of leasing goods to consumers. See
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Month: shall mean a calendar month and "year" shall mean a calendar year and be equivalent to the expression "year of our Lord. See
• 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.
• Occupant: means a person, successor, assignee, agent, or representative entitled to use storage space under a rental agreement to the exclusion of others. See
• Owner: means the owner, operator, lessor, or sublessor of a self- storage facility, an agent, or any other person authorized by the owner to manage the facility or to receive rent from an occupant under a rental agreement. See
• Owner: includes successors in interest of the owner and agents of the owner acting within their authority. See
• 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.
• pawnbroker: as used in this chapter includes any person, partnership, or corporation, loaning money on deposit or pledge of personal property, other than securities or written evidences of indebtedness; or doing business as furniture storage warehousepersons, and loaning and advancing money upon goods, wares, or merchandise pledged or deposited as collateral security. See
• Person: shall include any natural person, corporation, municipality, the State of Vermont or any department, agency, or subdivision of the State, and any partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See
• Person: refers to any individual, partnership, corporation, association, or other organization. See
• Personal information: means written information about a person that is not publicly available and that readily identifies that person or is closely associated with that person, including a Social Security number, credit or debit card information, a bank account number, medical information, or passport information. See
• Personal property: means movable property not affixed to land, and includes goods, merchandise, and household items. See
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• 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}
• Precious metal: means used gold, silver, platinum, palladium, coins sold for more than face value, jewelry, or similar items, but does not include an antique. See
• Precious metal dealer: means a person who:

• Purchase price: means the total price paid or to be paid for the consumer goods or services, including all interest and service charges. See
• real estate: shall include lands, tenements, and hereditaments and all rights thereto and interests therein, and pews or slips in places of public worship shall be treated as real estate. See
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Real property: means real estate, including lands, leaseholds, tenements and hereditaments, and improvements placed thereon. See
• 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.
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Rental agreement: means a written agreement that establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules, or any other provision concerning the use and occupancy of storage space. See
• Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Self-storage facility: means real property designed and used for the purpose of renting or leasing individual storage space to an occupant. See
• Seller: means a person regularly and principally engaged in a business of selling goods or services to consumers. See
• services: shall include any objects, wares, goods, commodities, work, labor, intangibles, courses of instruction or training, securities, bonds, debentures, stocks, real estate, or other property or services of any kind. See
• 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.
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Storage space: means the individual space at a self-storage facility that is rented to an occupant under a rental agreement. See
• Subcontractor: means any person or entity that has contracted to perform work, or provide materials or machinery necessary to perform work for a contractor or another subcontractor in connection with a construction contract. See
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Town: shall include city and wards or precincts therein; "selectboard members" and "board of civil authority" shall extend to and include the mayor and aldermen of cities; "trustees" shall extend to and include bailiffs of incorporated villages; and the laws applicable to the inhabitants and officers of towns shall be applicable to the inhabitants and similar officers of all municipal corporations. See
• Trading stamp: refers to any stamp or similar device issued in connection with the retail sale of merchandise or service, as a cash discount or for any other marketing purpose, that entitles the rightful holder, on its due presentation for redemption, to receive merchandise, service, or cash. See
• 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.
• Work: means to build, alter, repair, or demolish any improvement on, connected with, or on or beneath the surface of any real property, or to excavate, clear, grade, fill, or landscape any real property or to construct driveways, private roadways, highways and bridges, drilled wells, septic, sewage systems, utilities, including trees and shrubbery, or to furnish materials, for any of such purposes, or to perform any labor upon real property. See