Terms Used In Virginia Code > Title 2.2 > Subtitle I > Part A > Chapter 4.4 - Office of the Children's Ombudsman

• Abused or neglected child: means the same as that term is defined in § 63. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Acquisition of a branch: means the acquisition of a branch located in a host state, without acquiring the bank of such branch. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• Administrative act: includes an action, omission, decision, recommendation, practice, or other procedure of the Department, a local department, or a child-placing agency with respect to a particular child related to adoption, foster care, or protective services. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Adult: means a person 18 years of age or more. See Virginia Code 1-203
• 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.
• Affiliate: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 U. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Agency: means any department, institution, authority, instrumentality, board or other administrative agency of the government of the Commonwealth of Virginia and any transportation district created pursuant to the Transportation District Act of 1964 (§ 33. See Virginia Code 8.01-195.2
• 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.
• Amortization: Paying off a loan by regular installments.
• 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.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Attorney General: means the Attorney General of Virginia, the Chief Deputy, other deputies, counsels or assistant attorneys general employed by the Office of the Attorney General and designated by the Attorney General to act pursuant to this article. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Attorney-at-law: A person who is legally qualified and licensed to practice law, and to represent and act for clients in legal proceedings.
• Bank: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 U. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Bank: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 U. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Bank: means any bank or trust company organized under the laws of the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-925
• Bank: means a corporation authorized by statute to accept deposits and to hold itself out to the public as engaged in the banking business in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Bank holding company: means any corporation (i) that directly or indirectly owns, controls, or holds with power to vote, 25 percent or more of the voting shares of one or more banks or of a corporation that is or becomes a bank holding company by virtue of this definition, (ii) that controls in any manner the election of a majority of the directors of one or more banks, or (iii) for the benefit of whose shareholders or members 25 percent or more of the voting shares of one or more banks or bank holding companies is held by trustees. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Bank holding company: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 U. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• 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.
• 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}
• Case law: The law as laid down in cases that have been decided in the decisions of the courts.
• Central registry: means the system maintained at the Department of Social Services pursuant to § 63. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• Child: means an individual under the age of 18. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Child-placing agency: means (i) any person who places children in foster homes, adoptive homes, or independent living arrangements pursuant to § 63. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Child-serving agency: means (i) a state agency that provides services to children, including the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, the Department of Education, the Department of Health, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department of Social Services, and the Office of Children's Services, and (ii) a local entity that provides services to children and that receives funding from a state agency under clause (i). See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Claim: means any request or demand, whether under a contract or otherwise, for money or property, regardless of whether the Commonwealth has title to the money or property, that (i) is presented to an officer, employee, or agent of the Commonwealth or (ii) is made to a contractor, grantee, or other recipient (a) if the money or property is to be spent or used on the Commonwealth's behalf or to advance a governmental program or interest and (b) if the Commonwealth provides or has provided any portion of the money or property requested or demanded or will reimburse such contractor, grantee, or other recipient for any portion of the money or property that is requested or demanded. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• 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.
• Commercial activities: means activities in which a bank holding company, a financial holding company, a national bank, or a national bank financial subsidiary may not engage under federal law. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Commission: means the State Corporation Commission. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Financial Institutions. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• 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.
• Commonwealth: means the Commonwealth of Virginia, any agency of state government, and any political subdivision of the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Community and economic development entity: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 C. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community development corporation: means a private, nonprofit corporation whose board of directors is composed primarily of community representatives or business, civic, and community leaders and whose principal purpose includes the provision of housing, community-based economic development projects, and social services that primarily benefit low-income individuals and communities. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community development project: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 C. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community Reinvestment Act: The Act is intended to encourage depository institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. It was enacted by the Congress in 1977. ^{Source: OCC}
• Community-based economic development: means activities that (i) seek to address economic development through affordable housing development or the rehabilitation of qualified rehabilitated buildings or certified historic structures or (ii) seek to address economic causes of poverty in specific geographic areas by revitalizing the economic and social base of low-income communities through activities that include (a) small business and micro-enterprise support; (b) commercial, industrial, and retail revitalization, retention, and expansion; (c) capacity development and technical assistance support for community development corporations; (d) employment and training efforts; (e) human resource development; and (f) social service enterprises. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Complainant: means an individual who makes a complaint pursuant to § 2. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• 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.
• Controlled substance: means a controlled substance as defined in Article 1 (§ 18. See Virginia Code 8.01-227.4
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: means the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. See Virginia Code 6.2-925
• Courts of record: means the Supreme Court of Virginia, the Court of Appeals of Virginia, and the circuit courts. See Virginia Code 1-212
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• De novo branch: means a branch of a bank located in a host state which (i) is originally established by the bank as a branch and (ii) does not become a branch of the bank as a result of the acquisition of another bank or a branch of another bank, or the merger, consolidation, or conversion of any such bank or branch. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• 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 Social Services. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Documentary material: means the original or any copy of any book, record, report, memorandum, paper, communication, tabulation, chart, or other document, or data compilations stored in or accessible through computer or other information retrieval systems, together with instructions and all other materials necessary to use or interpret such data compilations, and any product of discovery. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• 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}
• Employee: means any officer, employee or agent of any agency, or any person acting on behalf of an agency in an official capacity, temporarily or permanently in the service of the Commonwealth, or any transportation district, whether with or without compensation. See Virginia Code 8.01-195.2
• Employee: includes an employee or officer of the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Employer: includes the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• En banc: In the bench or "full bench." Refers to court sessions with the entire membership of a court participating rather than the usual quorum. U.S. courts of appeals usually sit in panels of three judges, but may expand to a larger number in certain cases. They are then said to be sitting en banc.
• 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 any corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or other legal or commercial entity. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• farm: means any person that obtains at least 51 percent of its annual gross income from agricultural operations and produces the agricultural waste used as feedstock for the waste-to-energy technology, (ii) "agricultural waste" means biomass waste materials capable of decomposition that are produced from the raising of plants and animals during agricultural operations, including animal manures, bedding, plant stalks, hulls, and vegetable matter, and (iii) "waste-to-energy technology" means any technology, including but not limited to a methane digester, that converts agricultural waste into gas, steam, or heat that is used to generate electricity on-site. See Virginia Code 1-222.1
• FDIC: means the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• 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}
• Federal statute: means a federal statute that is in accord with the United States Constitution imposing mandates on state or local governments, which may include, but is not limited to, the following:

  1. See Virginia Code 2.2-617

• Financial holding company: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 U. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Financial institution: means any bank, trust company, savings institution, industrial loan association, consumer finance company, or credit union. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Foster care: means care provided to a child by a foster parent, children's residential facility, or group home licensed or approved by the Department under Chapter 9 of Title 63. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• 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}
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
• Guarantor: A party who agrees to be responsible for the payment of another party's debts should that party default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Habeas corpus: A writ that is usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of his imprisonment. It may also be used to bring a person in custody before the court to give testimony, or to be prosecuted.
• Health care provider: means a health care provider as defined in § 8. See Virginia Code 8.01-227.4
• Home state: means :

  1. See Virginia Code 6.2-836

• Home state: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Host state: means a state, other than the home state of a bank, in which the bank maintains, or seeks to establish and maintain, a branch. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Host state: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• incarcerated: means confinement in a local or regional correctional facility, juvenile correctional center, state correctional facility, residential detention center, or facility operated pursuant to the Corrections Private Management Act (§ 53. See Virginia Code 8.01-195.10
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• insolvency: means incapable of meeting the current demands of creditors or having liabilities which, in total, exceed the book value of assets. See Virginia Code 6.2-912
• Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
• Interrogatories: Written questions asked by one party of an opposing party, who must answer them in writing under oath; a discovery device in a lawsuit.
• Interstate merger transaction: means :

  1. See Virginia Code 6.2-849

• Investigation: means any inquiry conducted by an investigator for the purpose of ascertaining whether any person is or has been engaged in any violation of this article. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Juror: A person who is on the jury.
• Law-enforcement agency: means any crime victim and witness assistance program whose funding is provided in whole or in part by grants administered by the Department of Criminal Justice Services pursuant to § 9. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• 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.
• Local department: means the local department of social services of any county or city in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Material: means having a natural tendency to influence, or be capable of influencing, the payment or receipt of money or property. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Month: means a calendar month and "year" means a calendar year. See Virginia Code 1-223
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Mortgage loan: A loan made by a lender to a borrower for the financing of real property. ^{Source: OCC}
• National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. ^{Source: OCC}
• National Credit Union Administration: The federal regulatory agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions. (NCUA also administers the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, which insures the deposits of federal credit unions.) ^{Source: OCC}
• 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.
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Oath: includes affirmation. See Virginia Code 1-228
• Obligation: means an established duty, whether or not fixed, arising from (i) an express or implied contractual, grantor-grantee, or licensor-licensee relationship; (ii) a fee-based or similar relationship; (iii) a statute or regulation; or (iv) the retention of any overpayment. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• 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.
• Office: means the Office of the Children's Ombudsman established under § 2. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Official use: means any use that is consistent with the law, regulations, and policies of the Commonwealth, including use in connection with (i) internal memoranda and reports of the Office of the Attorney General; (ii) communications between the Office of the Attorney General and a federal, state, or local government agency, or a contractor of a federal, state, or local government agency, undertaken in furtherance of an Office of the Attorney General investigation or prosecution of a case; (iii) interviews of any qui tam relator or other witness; (iv) oral examinations; (v) depositions; (vi) the preparation for and response to civil discovery requests; (vii) the introduction into the record of a case or proceeding; (viii) applications, motions, memoranda, and briefs submitted to a court or other tribunal; and (ix) communications with government investigators, auditors, consultants, experts, the counsel of other parties, arbitrators, and mediators, concerning an investigation, case, or proceeding. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Ombudsman: means the individual appointed to head the Office of the Children's Ombudsman under § 2. See Virginia Code 2.2-438
• Oral argument: An opportunity for lawyers to summarize their position before the court and also to answer the judges' questions.
• Out-of-state bank: means a bank whose home state is a state other than the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Out-of-state bank: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Out-of-state state bank: means a bank chartered under the laws of any state other than the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Out-of-state state bank: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Person: includes any natural person, corporation, firm, association, organization, partnership, limited liability company, business or trust. See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Person: shall include individuals, a trust, an estate, a partnership, an association, an order, a corporation, or any other legal or commercial entity;

  6. See Virginia Code 8.01-2

• Person: means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or other legal or commercial entity. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Person under disability: includes a person less than 18 years of age. See Virginia Code 1-232
• Personal representative: includes the executor of a will or the administrator of the estate of a decedent, the administrator of such estate with the will annexed, the administrator of such estate unadministered by a former representative, whether there is a will or not, any person who is under the order of a circuit court to take into his possession the estate of a decedent for administration, and every other curator of a decedent's estate, for or against whom suits may be brought for causes of action that accrued to or against the decedent. See Virginia Code 1-234
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• 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.
• 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.
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Probation officers: Screen applicants for pretrial release and monitor convicted offenders released under court supervision.
• Product of discovery: means (i) the original or duplicate of any deposition, interrogatory, document, thing, result of the inspection of land or other property, examination, or admission, which is obtained by any method of discovery in any judicial or administrative proceeding of an adversarial nature; (ii) any digest, analysis, selection, compilation, or derivation of any item listed in clause (i); and (iii) any index or other manner of access to any item listed in clause (i). See Virginia Code 8.01-216.2
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public facilities: means (i) airports, landing fields, and air navigation facilities; (ii) educational facilities; (iii) flood control, bank and shore protection, watershed protection, and dams; (iv) hospital facilities; (v) judicial and court facilities; (vi) correctional facilities, including jails and penitentiaries; (vii) library facilities; (viii) military installations; (ix) parks so designated by the Commonwealth or by the locality in its comprehensive plan; (x) properties of historical significance so designated by the Commonwealth; (xi) law enforcement, fire, emergency medical, and rescue facilities; (xii) sanitary sewer, water or stormwater facilities; (xiii) transportation facilities including highways, roads, streets, and bridges, traffic signals, related easements and rights-of-way, mass transit, ports, and any components of federal, state, or local transportation facilities; (xiv) waste management facilities for hazardous, radioactive, or other waste; (xv) office facilities occupied by a public corporation; and (xvi) such other facilities that are necessary to the construction, maintenance, or operation of a public facility as listed in clauses (i) through (xv) and directly related thereto. See Virginia Code 1-219.1
• Public welfare investment: means any investment permitted by 12 C. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act: Federal law that, among other things, requires lenders to provide "good faith" estimates of settlement costs and make other disclosures regarding the mortgage loan. RESPA also limits the amount of funds held in escrow for real estate taxes and insurance. ^{Source: OCC}
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Receivership court: means the circuit court that appoints a receiver for a bank pursuant to this article. See Virginia Code 6.2-925
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Resulting bank: means a bank that has resulted from an interstate merger transaction under this article. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Rural business investment company: means a company that has been granted final approval by the U. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Sentencing guidelines: A set of rules and principles established by the United States Sentencing Commission that trial judges use to determine the sentence for a convicted defendant. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Sheriff: shall include deputy sheriffs and such other persons designated in § 15. See Virginia Code 8.01-2
• State bank: means a bank incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth and that has its principal place of business in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subpoena duces tecum: A command to a witness to produce documents.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Supreme Court: means the Supreme Court of Virginia. See Virginia Code 1-249
• sworn: means "affirm" or "affirmed. See Virginia Code 1-250
• Tax equity finance transaction: has the meaning assigned to it in 12 C. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• 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.
• Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
• 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.
• Trust business: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Trust company: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Virginia bank: means a bank whose home state is Virginia. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Virginia state bank: means a bank chartered under the laws of Virginia. See Virginia Code 6.2-836
• Virginia state bank: has the meaning assigned to it in § 6. See Virginia Code 6.2-849
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
• wrongfully incarcerated: means incarceration for a felony conviction for which (i) the conviction has been vacated pursuant to Chapter 19. See Virginia Code 8.01-195.10