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April 03, 2022

Can You Restructure Structured Settlements? Black Square Financial v CrowFly LLC

by Structured Settlement Watchdog

The use of the word restructured is misleading. When "restructured" is used in connection with "structured settlements" it appears at first blush, that there is some connection between the two. THERE ISN'T.  It's a scam the way it's being promoted by the settlement purchasers to injury victims.

Structured settlements have unique benefits set forth in the tax code. To do a so called "restructured settlement" you must sell your structured settlement payment rights AT A DISCOUNT, which might be substantial, BEFORE other products are purchased to create a new payment stream with the discounted amount of money.

While structured settlement is a defined term under the Internal Revenue Code, the Code makes no mention of restructuring structured settlements

My Previous Commentary on "Restructured Settlements"

Structured Settlement "Restructuring" | Beware The Structured Settlement Factoring Company Scam - Structured Settlements 4Real® Blog: Structured Settlements | Settlement Planning News and John Darer Reviews (typepad.com March 25, 2018

Can Terms of Your Structured Settlement Change? Restructured Settlements - Structured Settlements 4Real® Blog: Structured Settlements | Settlement Planning News and John Darer Reviews (typepad.com) July 12, 2010

Some Contrasting Points of View from the Structured Settlement Secondary Market

1. CrowFly LLC of Buffalo New York opines 

"Can you restructure a structured settlement?
 
Unfortunately, that plan cannot be changed once it's established. So, if you're wanting to get your payments early to cover a sudden financial need, then the insurance company that issues your policy won't be able to reverse your structured settlement or change your payment streams"
 
2. But Black Square Financial out of Coral Springs Florida claims it has:

1. "an innovative approach to restructuring policies where every plan is catered to your needs!"

"Catered" huh?   According to the Oxford English dictionary catered means "provide food and drink, typically at social events and in a professional capacity"  Black Square's copywriters may be " bartenders and waiters/waitresses", but are obviously not gifted linguists.

2. "Take control of your policy. Access funds as you need them and structure your policy in a way that benefits you the most".

3. "Get access to funds immediately in case of an emergency or opportunity. Use the lump­ sum payout to fulfill your needs or apply to a means of generating growth and longevity".

"Taking control of your policy" is a major misrepresentation on the part of Black Square Financial.  Anybody who knows what they are talking about in the industry knows that no annuitant owns or controls the annuity policy funding their structured settlement. 

No annuitant can sell a structured settlement annuity policy and no investor can buy it from the annuitant

I'm siding with CrowFly on this one.  I challenge Black Square Financial to supply proof of all of the structured settlement annuity policies they have purchased.  I suspect they can't, because in a structured settlement factoring transaction, they merely buy structured settlement payment rights.  So why is Black Square Financial lying to consumers over such a fundamental point?

 

Posted at 06:25 PM in Black Square Financial Commentary, Coral Springs Structured Settlements, Restructured Settlements, Structured Settlement Watchdog® |

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Guide to Structured Settlements 2024

  • What is a Structured Settlement? What You Need to Know
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  • How Do Structured Settlements Work? How Structured Settlements Work
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  • Rated Ages and Structured Settlement Cost
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  • Top Structured Settlement Annuity Companies 2024
    Which life insurance companies issue structured settlement annuities in 2024? A list of current structured annuity issuers, the location of their home offices and their financial ratings from A.M. Best, Moodys, Fitch, Standard & Poors and/or other Tier1 NAIC ratings, with links to their websites and other useful information. Last updated June 14, 2024
  • 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.
  • Compare Structured Settlement IRR to Other Settlement Alternatives
    Use the Taxable Equivalent Yield chart to help compare the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of a structured settlement to other alternative or complementary investments. Need help with the chart? Call 4structures.com® LLC at 888-325-8640
  • 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 Attorney 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.
  • Structured Settlement Annuity Company Customer Service Phone Numbers
    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 May 20, 2024.
  • Structured Settlement Quote Lock-Ins | What You Need To Know
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  • 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
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  • 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.
  • iStructure |Uncapped Fixed Index Structured Settlement Annuity
    iStructure is an innovative game changing fixed index structured settlement annuity for plaintiffs or attorneys. with an intermediate to long term horizon
  • Structured Settlements and Longevity Risk| What Are the Odds?
    Do your financial resources give you enough road, or will the road run out before you do? A structured settlement annuity helps mitigate the risk of outliving your savings, no matter how long you live. A structured settlement can include one or more customized payment streams and types.

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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