In the fall of 2024, the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) mailed letters to parents who once had an open dependecy and/or severance case.
Did you receive a letter? Visit the DCS letter page for more information.
Eviction
Glossaries
| Term | Main definition |
|---|---|
| Filing Fee | Amount of money charged by the court when a case is started. |
| Forcible Entry and Detainer | A special proceeding for returning possession of lands, tenements or other real property to a person who has been wrongfully kept off the land or deprived of use of the land. This is a common proceeding used in landlord/tenant disputes, also known as eviction. |
| Injunction | An order of the court directing a person not to do certain things. For example an injunction in a dissolution case orders the spouses not to sell any of the community property. |
| Injunctive relief | A court order to stop doing a particular act. |
| Justice Court | A lower, limited jurisdiction court. In justice courts, the judges are elected officials called Justices of the Peace. |
| Material Breach | A material breach of a contract is a significant violation of an agreement which can result in the complete termination of the agreement and the ability for the wronged party to sue for damages. |
| Plaintiff | Someone who brings an action, such as a complaint. |
| Satisfaction of Judgment | A document indicating a judgment has been paid or otherwise is no longer due, required to be filed with the clerk of each court where the judgment has been docketed and also recorded in the office of each county recorder where the judgment has been recorded. |
| Stipulation | An agreement between opposing individuals on any matter relating to the proceeding or trial. |
| Summons | A document given to a sheriff or other officer that tells the person named in the summons that a lawsuit has been started against them in court, and what day and time they have to show up at court. |
| Trial | Formal presentation of facts to a court or jury to reach a legal decision. |
| Writ of restitution | An enforcement order of an eviction. After a specified period of time if a tenant who has been evicted stays on the property a writ of restitution allows a sheriff or constable to remove the tenant from the property and allows the landlord to change the locks on the residence. |