Legal
Structured Settlements

A Structured Settlement is a method of paying damages to a plaintiff (the injured party) over a period of time when a lawsuit has been settled. A structured settlement most commonly results from a personal injury lawsuit involving:
• Product liability
• Motor vehicle collisions
• Wrongful death
• Medical malpractice

Structured settlement payments can be inflexible and often fail their intended purposes, particularly in cases when individuals receiving structured payments are faced with a financial emergency. Liquidating a portion of a structured settlement is often the most beneficial option, or sometimes the only solution to a critical financial need.

When the outcome of a lawsuit results in a settlement, the damages awarded are funded in the form of an annuity contract issued by an insurance company. This settlement is structured as follows:
• A company (typically an insurance company) is selected by the defendant to structure the settlement.
• The structured settlement company purchases an annuity contract and sends the payments from the annuity to the plaintiff. The payments are fixed in time and amount.
• The structured settlement company retains ownership of the annuity even though the plaintiff is the beneficiary.

Who Can Benefit From the Sale of a Structured Settlement?
Each year about 15,000 new structured settlement transactions are originated in the United States. This ever-growing number points to an estimated cash flow of $25 billion. Plaintiffs receiving a structured settlement can benefit from the sale of their stream of payments by receiving a lump-sum of cash.

Assignability of structured settlements is regulated by state. To be able to help you we would need to know the state you live in, the insurance company and the amount of the payments. Contact us for further information and assistance in this area.


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