Law new describes laws that have recently been created, or changed. A law may be made when the executive branch of government (the President or Governor) signs a bill that has been passed by the legislative branch of government (Congress or the Legislature). A law can also be created or changed when at least two cases that involve the same issues of law are consolidated into one case, and the Judge decides only on the issues in the merged case. The law may be changed by adding new parts to the old case, or deleting some of the old case and “renaming” the rest to eliminate the space left by the deleted part(s). A law can also be modified by changing existing terms or by replacing them with new terms.
Custody
The legal and physical control of a person or thing. A court may order custody in many kinds of cases, including divorce, child abuse, and eviction. The court can also create a custody order that grants visitation rights to a parent who does not have custody. The court may also establish visitation rights for other types of people, such as grandparents.
Damages
Money that a person must pay to another to cover something wronged, such as the cost of fixing a car or medical bills for an injury. Damages can be awarded in civil cases, criminal cases, and probate cases.
Defamation
When someone says something that is untrue or damaging about another. This can be done in writing or spoken. The defendant can respond with a rebuttal. The judge will then make a decision about who is right and who is wrong.
Language access
This new law codified and expanded the State’s language access policy, requiring all agencies that interact with members of the public to offer interpretation services in any of the top 12 languages of people with limited English proficiency, or to translate vital agency documents into those languages. Each agency is able to choose additional languages to offer, based on feedback from community groups and data about the populations of LEP residents that the agency serves.