The following defined terms are used throughout the Childhood & Parenting materials.

Age of majority. The age at which a person acquires all the rights and responsibilities of being an adult, which in most states is eighteen.

Bad faith. The intent to deceive. Someone who intentionally tries to mislead another in order to gain an advantage is said to be acting in bad faith.

Beneficiary. The person to whom property is granted in a trust or a will.

Child abuse. The purposeful harming of a child by an adult. Child abuse may be physical, sexual, or emotional.

Custodial account. An account formed under the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA) or Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA), which both provide methods by which to give gifts of money or other funds to children. An adult "custodian" chosen by the giver manages the accounts until the child reaches the age of majority. Custodial accounts in some way resemble trusts.

Custodian. Under the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, the person appointed to manage and disburse funds for a child.

Emancipated. The achievement of independence from his or her parents by a minor. A minor may become emancipated through marriage before the age of eighteen, or by becoming fully self-supporting.

Estate. The property and money held by a person.

False allegations. As used in these materials, unfounded accusations of child abuse made either in good faith, as by a mandatory reporter, or in bad faith, as by an embittered ex-spouse seeking revenge.

Guardian. The person selected in a will or other official document, or assigned by the court, to take care of minor children or their estates.

Guardian of the estate. The person appointed to oversee the money and property left to a minor in a will or other devise.

Guardian of the person. The person appointed or selected to provide for the care and upbringing of children upon the death or incapacitation of their parents.

Immunity. Exemption from a legal duty or penalty.

Juvenile court. A special court system employed exclusively to hear and decide matters relating to juveniles, including juvenile delinquency, neglect and dependency, termination of parental rights, and adoption matters.

Mandatory reporter. A person required by law to report known or suspected cases of child abuse or neglect.

Minor. A person who has not reached the age of majority (which in most states is eighteen), and who therefore does not have the legal rights of an adult.

Neglect. A passive indifference to a child's well being by a parent or guardian, such as by failing to feed the child or leaving him or her alone for an extended period of time.

Termination of parental rights. The legal proceeding by which a parent's rights to his or her child are terminated. Parental rights are terminated when the parents have abused or neglected their child, and when parents voluntarily relinquish custody so that their birth child may be placed for adoption.

Trust. A legal instrument by which property is given to a trustee to manage for the benefit of a third person, called the beneficiary.

Trustee. The person or institution that oversees and manages the property in a trust.

Uniform Gifts to Minors Act. See "Custodial account."

Uniform Transfers to Minors Act. See "Custodial account."