Glossary Legal Terms Simplified
Acknowledgement of Debt (AOD): Debt collectors will usually ask you to sign
a piece of paper that states you admit to owing somebody money. This is an
acknowledgment of debt.
Administration Order: When unable to pay your debts, you can apply
for administration. This results in an administration order from the
court, which appoints somebody to pay your debts on your behalf on a
monthly basis, i.e. an administrator is appointed to ensure your
repayments go as agreed in the administration order.
Adverse Listing: negative information contained in one’s credit record.
Affidavit: a sworn declaration before the court.
Affordability: One’s ability to pay debt from one’s regular income after paying
for daily living expenses.
Applicant: the person who approaches the court to have their case heard and
for the court to make a decision on the case.
Attach/Attachment: taking possession of somebody’s assets, through a court
order, in order to recover debts owed.
Blacklist: This term is used to describe people who have had negative
credit information contained in their credit record. There is no actual
“blacklist”, but rather just negative information in one’s credit record.
Civil Proceedings: Cases brought before court are usually either criminal or
civil matters. Where a dispute arises between two private parties such as a
creditor and debtor, rather than a crime being committed, it is regarded as a
civil matter. Civil proceedings relate to the taking of action to bring a civil
matter before court.
Clearance Certificate: A clearance certificate is issued after a person has
undergone debt review, or debt counselling, and has paid off all their debts.
The clearance certificate allows the person concerned to instruct credit
bureaux to remove information from their credit record, which indicates the
person was under debt review.
Closed User Group: A closed user group is like a ‘members only club’, i.e. the
group and information shared within the group is limited in terms of who may
access it.
Commercial grounds: reasons related to the business plan of the concerned
entity.
Commissioner of Oaths: a
authenticity of documents.
person
authorised
by
law
to
certify
the
Confirmatory Affidavit:
Consent Notice: a document in a certain format, that indicates a party
agrees to a specific action. In the case of credit repair this relates to a
creditor consenting or agreeing to the removal of a listing.
Consumer: a person buying goods or services.
Consumer credit report: factual data about a consumer’s credit history and
how he/she has managed that history.
Credit: buying goods or services and/or borrowing cash and paying for it
later.
Credit agreement: a signed declaration between a creditor and a
consumer, which stipulates terms and conditions of repayment of a
debt by the consumer.
Credit Bureau: an organisation that collects and stores credit record
information of consumers.
Credit information ombudsman:
Credit Providers’ Association (CPA):
Credit score: an assessment of how well a person has managed credit
in the past, based on his/her credit record.
Debt: money owed to somebody.
Debt counselling: the process by which an over-indebted person can
renegotiate current debt repayments, without compromising his/her
ability to pay essential daily living expenses. Once under debt
counselling a consumer may not receive further credit.
Default judgment: an order of court that declares you have not kept to the
terms and conditions of a credit agreement, by not paying as stipulated. The
order allows creditors to attach a consumer’s assets and it orders the
consumer to pay the debt. This can result in extra expense for you as you
shall now have to pay the debt plus the interest that has been added to it and
the legal costs of the court order, i.e. sheriff’s and the attorney’s fees.
Debt Management: the ability to control how one borrows so as to be able to
repay credit.
Defendant: the consumer who stands accused of not paying his/her debt.
Draft Court Order: a court order written by the applicant, but not yet
endorsed by the court.
Emolument: a wage or salary.
EAO or Emolument attachment order: a court order which instructs the
consumer’s employer to deduct the money that the consumer owes, from
their salary and to give it straight to a credit provider.
Enforcement: action taken to ensure a debt is collected, after the debtor has
defaulted.
Enquiry Information Listings:
Founding Affidavit:
Garnishee order: instructs people who owe the consumer money to pay this
directly to the consumer’s credit provider.
High Court:
Identity Theft: where somebody impersonates another, by using his/her
identity documents.
Instalments: regular payments (usually monthly) on a debt, agreed to at the
point when credit is granted.
Judgment: the court’s final decision.
Judgment Creditor: the creditor whom judgment is made in favour of.
Judgement debtor: the debtor whom judgment is taken against.
Juristic person: an entity with legal standing that is not a natural/biological
person, e.g. a company.
Letter of Demand: a letter stating that a debtor has not made payment as
agreed on credit, and warning the debtor of negative consequences should
he/she fail to make payment.
Magistrate’s Court:
Magistrate’s Court Act:
National Credit Act:
Notice Listings:
Notice of Motion: a written application to the court after a case has started
asking the court to make an order about something. The notice also tells the
other party where and when the court will hear the matter.
Order: a decision by a court that may require a person to do something, or to
stop doing something.
Over-indebted: being unable to make monthly debt repayments without
compromising the ability to pay for essential daily living expenses.
Payment Profile Information:
Plaintiff: another name for somebody approaching the court for a decision in
a civil matter.
Prescription: when a debt prescribes, it means the creditor has not taken
enforcement action to recover an outstanding debt three years after the last
payment on that debt.
Prescription Act: The legislation that governs rules of prescription.
Public Finance Management Act:
Rescission: rescission usually relates to a judgment and refers to the
process of having such a judgment cancelled.
Respondent: the person being accused or the other party involved in a
dispute after the plaintiff has begun civil proceedings.
Risk management and underwriting: the process creditors employ to weigh
risk against return in assessing whether to grant somebody credit.
SAFPS: South African Fraud Prevention Services.
Settlement of Debt: paying off a debt in full.
Sheriff of the Court: an officer of the court, who delivers to consumers
attachment orders to consumers who have had judgment taken against
them.
Summons: a court authorised letter instructing somebody to appear
before court on a specific date.
Surety: to stand surety for a borrower means to guarantee that one
will pay a debt on behalf of that borrower, if the borrower were to fail
to pay the debt as agreed initially.
Template: an example of a document, that can be used for specific
purposes by completing missing information on the template.
Trace Alert Listings: information on a credit record that shows that a
creditor has been trying to track a consumer down to enforce a debt.
Underwriting – see risk management and underwriting
Without Prejudice:
Working Days: Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays.