"A structured settlement is a financial agreement that provides individuals who have received a settlement or a large sum of money with a series of periodic payments over time, rather than as a lump sum. Structured settlements, which often result from legal cases, offer financial security and stability and allow for tax-free customized payments".
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog
Despite spouting purported editorial standards, time has shown that no matter how hard they try, Annuity.org just can't get
structured settlements right. They can't even get out of their own way. Par for the course is Catherine Byerly's latest effort on the structured settlement process,which can best be described as "untilled fallow" in my opinion. The land may not even be arable. The rot contagion spores cross pollinate from Structuredsettlements.com, a publication of the same organization, the latest ineptitude of which I covered here on November 10, 2022 Structuredsettlements.com | Another Episode of What's Wrong Wit Dat? - Structured Settlements 4Real® Blog: Structured Settlements | Settlement Planning News and Commentary (typepad.com) .
Annuity.org Process Step 2
The defendant and the plaintiff work with a qualified assignee to determine the terms of the structured settlement agreement — that is, how much the regular payments should be, how long they should continue for, whether they should increase or be supplemented by larger payouts at certain times, and so on. The defendant provides money for the qualified assignee to buy an annuity for the plaintiff.
What's Wrong Wit Dat Annuity.org?
Annuity.org Process Step 3
The qualified assignee purchases an annuity from a life insurance company, setting up the annuity contract to match the settlement needs. Once the terms of the annuity are set, they cannot be changed. An immediate lump sum may also be set aside to cover attorney fees or to fund a specified trust.
What's Wrong Wit Dat Annuity.org?
One should never rely on a source of information which is shilling for a company (or recently companies) that buys people's structured settlement payment rights for pennies on the dollar. I continue to document as I have time, and time again. for more than 5 years, that consumers can do far better. After 5 years it's clear that despite its posted purported standards, the Annuity.org/Structuredsettlments.com ineptitude is rampant, laced through every figurative "corpuscle" of its publications about structured settlements and that its editorial standards concerning structured settlements are a farce. The company excels at SEO and that's about it.
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog
Ex-Met Bobby Bonilla offered to strike a deal with the New York Mets. He wanted guaranteed yearly payments of $1,193,248.20 every year until his 70s and for that he wouldn’t be the Mets’ problem anymore. The deal resembled the choice lottery winners are are faced with: taking a smaller lump sum or taking payments in the form of an annuity. Even the Wall Street Journal thought it was a smart baseball move says Byerly: “By postponing their payments to Mr. Bonilla for 11 years, the Mets freed enough money to trade for starting pitcher Mike Hampton and outfielder Derek Bell and sign first baseman Todd Zeile. Those three players earned a combined $15.1 million in 2000, and the Mets reached the World Series that year for the first time since 1986.”
After entering the spaghetti junction of the non-sequitur, to barf explosive content about Bernie Madoff which has nothing to with annuities, Byerly settles down by doing what she does (make no sense attempting to drive home a point) "If Bonilla had taken the lump sum of $5.9 million in 2000 and then invested it in an S&P index fund at the time it would be worth around $8.8 million by 2015" says Byerly. Why is 2015 relevant, when the Byerly article is published June 17, 2020? The fact is that the JP Morgan Asset Management 2020 Retirement study shows that the an investment in the S&P 500 from the first trading day in January 2000 and held until December 31, 2019, would not have beaten a fixed structured settlement annuity purchased on the same day. Read my write up Structured Settlements Compared to the Alternatives, published on the 4structures.com website.
From 1992 to 1994 Bonilla was the highest paid player in the league – and today he’s still earning a big paycheck due to some wise planning. That's all that matters.
An excellent article by Boston.com staff writer Hayden Bird, published July 1, 2019 reveals that deferred money is not uncommon in sports. Bird reports:
"Going back to 1975, deferred money played a role in the case successfully made by pitcher Catfish Hunter to become a free agent. His subsequent deal with the Yankees also included more deferred money.
And more recently, star players like Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki still both enjoy annual salaries despite being retired. Gary Sheffield, who stopped playing in 2009, is getting his final payment in 2019 from the Tigers.
Even the Celtics reportedly agreed to pay Kevin Garnett $5 million annually for seven years after his retirement.
Two members of the 2004 Red Sox are still collecting a Major League paycheck. One is pitcher Bronson Arroyo, who last played in 2017. The Reds will pay Arroyo $1.36 million through 2021.
The other former Red Sox World Series winner with a deferred salary is Manny Ramirez. In 2011, Nick Cafardo reported that Ramirez and the Red Sox had agreed to pay a remaining $32 million in his contract over a 16-year period. The payout in 2019 is $2,008,397. The money is the last of Ramirez’s original deal with the Red Sox in 2000, when he signed an eight year contract worth $160 million.
In 2026, when Ramirez finally gets his last Red Sox paycheck, he will be 54 years old. That said, Red Sox fans are probably happier with the arrangement than Mets fans, considering Ramirez’s central contribution on multiple championship teams"
Full disclosure: This author is a New York Yankee fan, just like the judge who oversaw the Madoff profits case.
Post Script
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog
After promoting David Place as the guy "who wrote the book on lien resolution", Synergy Settlement Services is "throwing the book" at lawyer Dave Place for breach of
contract and seeks injunctive relief and to enforce restrictive covenants. Place named Synergy and its officers, individually, in counterclaims alleging a hostile work environment including salacious allegations concerning the CEO of Synergy Settlement Services.
Case Caption
Synergy Settlement Services, Inc., a Florida Corporation and
Jason D, Lazarus, an Individual,
Omar Quddus, an Individual,
Anthony Prieto , Jr., an Individual, jointly and severally,
and the Florida Bar Association
Venue: United States District Court Middle District of Florida Case 6:19-cv-1411. The matter was commenced by Synergy in the 9th Judicial District of Florida (Orange County) and removed o the Federal District Court Middle District of Florida at Orlando
From July 2012 to April 2019, Place was employed as Synergy's VP and Director of Lien Resolution. Place was responsible for managing Synergy's Lien Resolution Services and team in almost all states in the USA, including contacting and servicing Synergy's customers and expanding its services. Synergy alleges that for the most part Place satisfactorily perform his duties, but in 2017 Synergy claims that Place violated its policies and Synergy commenced progressive discipline against Place. On April 22, 2019 Synergy terminated Place's employment for cause effective immediately,
Synergy alleged that Place:
Synergy seeks a 2 year injunction, the imposition of a constructive trust and an award of liquidated damages.
Synergy advertised on its blog that "Synergy's Dave Place Wrote the book on Lien Resolution", saying Liens in Personal Injury Actions "was the only book of its kind in Virginia that is intended to help simplify the complexity that characterizes liens and to provide assistance to Virginia’s trial lawyers in securing the maximum net recovery for clients". The actual list of authors includes Dave Place among at least ten authors and contributors.
ISBN: 9780820580371. Download Synergy David Place wrote the book - Google Search 8-25-2019
Synergy's counsel Gary S. Salzman, Esq. of Orlando's Garganese, Weiss, D'Agresta & Salzman, P.A., pointed out in a letter dated August 27, 2019, that the Florida Circuit Court entered an order on July 23, 2019, which dismissed the counterclaim of Dave Place and The Place Law Firm , PLLC. In the dismissal it states that Place had until August 19, 2019 to amend. Subsequent to the dismissal, on July 29, 2019, Place, signed and he and The Place Law Firm, PLLC filed for removal to the Middle District of Florida where it was entered on August 2, 2019. The caption in the 4 page Document 1 on the Pacer record for the removal includes Place and The Place Law Firm as Third Party Plaintiffs and Synergy Settlement Services and the officers named above as Third Party Defendant. Download Pacer Doc 1 Synergy v Place Middle District of Florida. However none of the attachments filed by Place and associated with document 1 referred to the dismissal. It appears that Place's counter claims will be refiled.
The litigation against Place and The Place law Firm is one of a pair of lawsuits against individuals formerly associated with its heralded lien resolution team. In the other lawsuit, filed April 2, 2019 in Orange county Circuit Court, is against William Nathan Parkey and Panoptic Insurance Group, LLC d/b/a Panoptic Settlement Solutionss and Zipliens, LLC, Synergy seeks injunctive relief, compensatory damages, exemplary damages, and attorney ’s fees under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the Uniform Trade Secrets Act. According to his website, Parkey is Managing Partner and Chief Compliance Officer for Panoptic Financial Group, a Registered Investment Advisor, offering financial planning and investment services. Nathan consults attorneys and their clients across the state of Kentucky and select areas outside of the state.
That's Not All Folks! There's another lawsuit pending
David L. Place v Synergy Settlement Services, Inc.,a Florida Corporation In the Culpeper General District Court Virgina
Case No. V19-891
Dave Place sued Synergy Settlement Services Inc. Culpeper County Virginia back in the Spring for breach of contract. According to the Bill of Particulars for the lawsuitagainst Synergy and filed exhibits:
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog
Jolted from a dream where Annuity.org had begun to cite sources with aspire to their recently published editorial standards, Ronnie Zelek's mediocre crew of researchers are back. Catherine Byerly is once again the "bête noire", for confusing the "Federal(sic) Periodic Payment Settlement Act of 1982" with the Victims of Terrorism Tax Relief of 2001, IRC 5891 and structured settlement protection. Byerly makes the bungling assertion that the 1982 act mandates court approval for "the sale process". [source Annuity.org website, see below]
Not only does the PPSA not have anything to do with factoring, but what factoring regulation has existed since 2002, has nothing (except in Maryland) to do with the sales process. That's what enables lead pimps like Annuity.org to turn out BS about structured settlements faqs for Sutton Park Steve Pasko's bauble, CBC Settlement Funding.
The mandated court approval is only effective if you have judges that are taking their jobs seriously. Retired Judge Dean Sword approved 8 of 11 transactions in less than 2 years for an unemployable African American man with a 4 year old child who was set for life after a child hood bur injury settlement. Other judges dockets wee so full that they had inadequate time to properly consider best interest or any interest before making a life impacting decision. Mostly African American lead paint victims in Baltimore were all herded into another county by an Access Funding lawyer who later took bribes as a liquor commissioner. where a corrupt judge heard their cases as they were scammed. A 21 year old African American New Yorker was forum shopped into Florida where he became a victim of 365 Advance/Novation Funding who shafted him for close to $1.5 million.
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog
Annuity.org just released 6 videos on its YouTube channel. The quality of the videos is awful. The presenters are ill prepared and amateurish, but that's just what one as come to expect from Annuity.org, exposed time and time again for awful research as the lead pimp for CBC Settlement Funding.
Juliette Fairley lacks command of the subject of annuities and especially looks way off her game at $5,000-$10,000 per gig. Fairley's performance belies her bio that appears on the Annuity.org website.
"Author Juliette Fairley is a business and finance reporter who has anchored online news reports for The Street and has written articles for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Advisor and many other publications. Juliette, a lecturer and TV host, graduated from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. She is the author of four books published by John Wiley & Sons, including Cash in the City, which became a money reality TV show Juliette hosted on the Discovery Channel. She has been featured on radio and television networks, including CNBC, CNN and FOX. She has written about a wide variety of topics, including health, wellness, investing, law, real estate and insurance. She belongs to the American Society of Journalists and Authors". Who cares, Juliette Fairley clearly knows jack about annuities. With that preamble you'd have thought you would be seeing Maria Bartiromo part deux.
Lauren Terfehr, who appears in one of the five videos has no credibility in my opinion. Terfehr showed her self to be completely full of fluff when she responded to a tweet in 2016 about the inaccuracies on the sister site structuredsettlements(dot)com by saying how much the organization cares about accuracy when 3 years later Annuity.org still shows Chronovo as an annuity issuer. Totally ridiculous and even more so given Terfehr's relationship with Ronnie Zelek, the registered owner of the Annuity.org domain and Marketing Director. Here's the baby gift registry.
Annuity.org consistently violates its own published editorial guidelines about accuracy which states "Content on Annuity should be accurate and backed up by as many relevant facts as reasonably possible. Annuity writers should always strive to use facts arranged in a meaningful context to provide fair, reliable and clear reports for the public. Annuity articles are spellchecked, grammatically correct and typo-free.
Allstate is listed as one of the best annuity companies. The funny thing is that Allstate stopped selling ne policies in 2013. Anyone in the business would know that. But this stuff is all over the Internet. For example in the opening paragraph of a Bloomberg article published November 8, 2018. As of February 11, 2019 however, Alanna Ritchie says "Allstate is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the country and the largest that is publicly owned. It sells deferred and immediate fixed annuities". Grade F
Alanna Ritchie lists lower credit quality companies as among the best
"Cat fight" between Juliette Fairley's credibility and Alanna Ritchie's. Ritchie includes Genworth with its B- rating from AM Best and a B- rating from Standard & Poors and B3 rating from Moodys.
Ritchie also lists Fidelity Insurance Network as an annuity company
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog®
It seems that nothing constructive gets done on structured settlement factoring protections until the mainstream press enters the mix. That ex-Miami lawyer and officer of the court Jose Manuel Camacho Jr. admitted to having forged 114 structured settlement transfer orders and was arrested 4 months ago somehow flew under the radar, until I started to cover this last month is very troubling. The Sun Sentinel is on the scene now in what may be the opening salvo of articles to look into the the activities of the Florida structured settlement factoring scene. Today's article Lawyer accused of forging signatures of seven Broward judges appears in the Ft. Lauderdale based Sun Sentinel's Crime section. Already the story has been picked up by the ABA journal and other national publications. The Camacho forgeries are the second such forgeries off judges signatures on structured settlement transfer orders that have come to light in recent years, with 234 orders forged by an employee of a New York City personal injury law firm used by settlement purchasers.
On January 6, 2016 Jason Sutherland of DRB Capital, speaking on behalf of the National Association of Settlement Purchasers, said that "Recent news reports have attempted to portray the structured settlement purchasing industry as one that purposefully lacks transparency and persuades the disabled to sell a lifetimes' worth of income for much less in return. This is a biased take on the industry and the laws in place that govern structured settlement transfers.— the very opposite of secretive. Was there an oath of omerta among structured settlement factoring companies on the Camacho forgeries? There is evidence that the negative SEO crowd has already at work trying to bury the story from when it first came out last month.
The State of Florida is the home to a cluster of structured settlement factoring companies including several that hired accused forger Jose Manuel Camacho Jr. The State of Florida is the landing state for interstate forum shopping, where structured settlement recipients from other states are targeted, sometimes bribed, sometimes aided and abetted into making false statements on structured settlement transfer documents that if known, would jeopardize compliance with structured settlement protection act, not only hurting the targeted annuitants but also investors not aware that the deals were forum shopped. The State of Florida, like many states has no license requirement of solicitors of annuitants or investors, and no regulator of the settlement purchasing industry.
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by Structured Settlement Watchdog®
The term Settlement Exchange falsely implies a regulated marketplace. Settlement exchange is nothing like a stock exchange, which IS highly regulated. There is no federal or state supervision of a so called "settlement exchange". Structured settlement sellers or structured settlement investors should therefore not be confused.
Some examples of the websites and/or entities being marketed as settlement exchanges or structured settlement exchanges:
With respect to real regulated financial exchanges, a good example is the New York Stock Exchange.
The Securities Exchange Commission is the federal government's oversight agency for regulating securities trading in the United States. The agency not only supervises U.S. financial markets, including Self-regulatory organizations like the New York Stock Exchange, but it also supervises brokerage firms and transfer agents who facilitate securities transactions for buyers and sellers. In addition, the SEC requires publicly owned companies to adhere to policies of full disclosure concerning internal financial matters. - [See more at: http://wiki.fool.com/Who_Regulates_the_New_York_Stock_Exchange%3F#sthash.baSMhqSV.dpuf]
It's bad enough that there is no licensing requirement or regulatory oversight dealing with how consumers and investors are solicited, but to insinuate an structured settlement exchange and what that implies to both investors and consumers is ludicrous.
In 2013, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has this to say about solicitors of structured settlement annuitants to sell their structured settlement payments for a lump sum of cash:
Are you getting regular distributions from a settlement following a personal injury lawsuit? If so, you may be targeted by salespeople offering you a lump sum today to buy the rights to some or all of the payments you would otherwise receive in the future. Retired government employees and retired members of the military are among those being approached with such offers.
Typically the lump sum offered will be less—sometimes much less—than the total of the periodic payments you would otherwise receive.
You will need to think about how to replace the cash flow your pension or structured settlement income provides, especially if you depend on that income stream to pay monthly or other expenses. Furthermore, be aware that some salespeople can be aggressive or persuasive when trying to get you to sell your income stream and, in some cases, there may be outright fraud. - See
One can only speculate why politicians have not regulated this market segment. It is known that there is
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by John Darer® CLU ChFC MSSC CeFT® RSP CLTC
Plaintiff and Claimant are legal and settlement terms that are often used interchangeably. But we could be talking apples and oranges!
A plaintiff is the person or entity initiating a lawsuit by filing a complaint in a court of law.
A claimant is someone either bringing a case to court or more commonly, bringing a claim to his, her, their, or the other side's insurance company.
A defendant is a person or entity against whom an action or claim is brought in a court of law
What is a Respondent?
A respondent is the individual or entity that responds to a claim. Often refers to a pre-suit claim.
An Applicant is the party that opens a case at the local Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) office by filing an application for adjudication of a Workers' Compensation claim
There are some important differences in structured settlement documents between cases in claim or suit. Proper structured settlement documentation in settlement documents is crucial in order to achieve the goals of the settling parties. Don't talk apples and oranges! Check out my video below for more information about structured settlement documentation.
Feel free to contact me at 888-325-8640 if you have any questions about these structured settlement terms(or others) and terms related to legal settlements.
Last updated July 9, 2024
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