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January 18, 2007

Meligan/ Settlement Professionals Inc. Whiff on Structured Settlements

by Structured Settlement Watchdog

FACT OR FICTION?

"Instead of taking the entire settlement or judgment in cash, you have the option to “structure” all or a portion of your recovery in order to generate future payments designed to coordinate with your future needs. The original defendant will generally “assign” his/her obligation to make the future payments to a major life insurance company (such as New York Life, MetLife etc) and the payments are then paid to you by the life insurance company in the form of an annuity." Jack Meligan, Settlement Professionals, Inc. from "What are Structured Settlements?"  on SPI website 01/18/2007

The Missing Details

  1. You do NOT have the option to structure a judgment if the final appeal has been exhausted.
  2. In a New York State case, pursuant to Articles 50A and 50B. the future payments generated  by structured judgments are NOT coordinated with your needs. In a case in which there is high pain & suffering, or future medicals, a structured settlement is often negotiated in lieu of a judgment, because a structured judgment is NOT customized like a structured settlement
  3. The manner in which such structured judgments are paid is set forth in the Articles 50A or 50B of the New York CPLR and is related to what the judge (or jury) awards.
  4. A "qualified assignment" can be made by either the original defendant(s), the insurer(s) for the defendant(s) or the trustee of a qualified settlement fund
  5. Settlement Professionals, Inc. account of the structured settlement process is incorrect. Their description of the assignee, to whom the obligations are assigned, is inaccurate.The assignee is generally NOT a major life insurance company and certainly NOT the one issuing the structured settlement annuity. Most are special purpose qualified assignment companies. However, in most cases the performance of the assignee is guaranteed by the annuity issuer.

Read How Structured Settlements Work

See the details of Which Life Insurance Companies Write  Structured Settlement Annuities, including an accurate list of qualified assignment companies

Posted at 09:30 AM in Lake Oswego Structured Settlements, New York CPLR Article 50A or Article 50B Structured Judgment, Oregon Structured Settlements, Settlement Advertising Wall of Shame, Settlement Planning Issues, Settlement Professionals, Inc., Structured Judgments, Structured Settlement Definitions, Structured Settlement Information, Structured Settlement Watchdog®, Structured Settlements |

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Guide to Structured Settlements 2024

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  • Rated Ages and Structured Settlement Cost
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  • Treasury Funded Structured Settlements
    Treasury Funded Structured Settlements are a settlement option for the most conservative using the OTHER permissible qualified funding asset under IRC 130(d), United States Treasury Bonds in addition to, or instead of, structured settlement annuities. Treasury Funded Structured Settlements can also be used to fund installment sales, also known as structured sales and other non qualified structured settlements.
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  • Structured Settlement Payments | Types of Structured Settlements 2024
    Ways You Can Structure Your Settlement Payments in 2024. With a structured settlement you can have more than one type of payment in a single contract. Different types of structured settlement payments can be customized and combined to meet your needs on a stand-alone basis, or in conjunction with other financial products. Diversify your structured settlement, if you wish, by funding with more than one annuity issuer, with treasury funded structured settlements, index linked structured settlement payments and market based structured .
  • Structured Attorney Fees for Tax Deferral for Contingency Fees
    Structured attorney fees is a financial strategy that offers a unique way to defer taxes for lawyers and law firms. Lawyers CAN structure their legal fees even if the plaintiff doesn't structure their settlement. There are multiple ways to structure your attorney fees, such as capped or uncapped index linked structured settlement annuities where payments are adjusted based on upside changes in the S&P 500 or another index, Trial Lawyers may also use a special deferred pay/deferred compensation arrangement, if market based returns returns are desired with no cap. Plan NOW for year end! Put structured attorney fee expert John Darer® on your settlement planning team in 2024.
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    Receiving structured settlement payments from your own structured settlement or inherited structured settlement? You'll like this huge time saver. Click the title for a link to a comprehensive list of customer service telephone numbers that includes both current AND former structured settlement annuity issuers and reinsurers. If you have simple bank or beneficiary changes, or if the insurance company that issued the structured annuity has merged, sold or spun off its block of structured annuity business (e.g. Aviva, Allstate, Transamerica, AEGON, GE Capital, Liberty, CNA, Confederation Life), oran annuity issuer has changed its name and you're trying to track them down. Here you go! The list is regularly updated. Last updated March 15, 2024
  • Structured Settlement Quote Lock-Ins | What You Need To Know
    What does a Structured Settlement Lock-In Mean? How do plaintiffs, defendants and insurers benefit from a structured settlement quote lock in when finalizing a settlement? How does the defendant/insurer/court benefit from using a structured settlement lock-in? Where to be careful when using structured settlement lock ins.
  • What Are Structured Settlement Annuities?
    Structured settlement annuities are annuities that can provide one or more customized annuity payment streams in a single contract. Read about structured settlement annuities here.
  • History of Structured Settlements
    Tracing the roots of structured settlements history from 1918, when Congress exempted damages for personal injury or sickness from income tax, to the establishment of structured settlements as a core personal injury settlement planning tool to the present day.
  • What Are Market Based Structured Settlements?
    Market based structured settlements are an alternative or supplementary structured settlement solution for the plaintiff, attorney or law firm that: 1. Can afford to take some market risk 2. Have discretionary settlement dollars. Claimants and attorneys alike may find that market-based structured settlements provide the opportunity to receive tax-free income, or tax-deferred income, while enjoying growth potential.
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Qualified Settlement Funds

  • What is a Qualified Settlement Fund?
    Qualified Settlement Funds | What You Need to Know
  • Firmwide Qualified Settlement Funds Debunked
    Firmwide qualified settlement funds have been heavily promoted to trial lawyers, but have been debunked in a detailed analysis in a July 2022 legal opinion a tax partner at the law firm of Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLP. Trial lawyers and firms who have established Firmwide QSFs or coinsidering establishing a Firmwide QSF should read the analysis as part of their evaluation.

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  • New York Insurance Advertising law requires the full name of the Insurer to be listed along with the city and state of the principal office. Stating that you represent these fine companies using Insurance company logos without the preceding information are also illegal
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