Structured Settlements 4Real® Blog: Structured Settlements | Settlement Planning News and Commentary

Risks of Investing in Structured Settlement Factoring Deals

by John Darer CLU ChFC CSSC RSP

Pete Vodola of West Hartford, Connecticut's Seiger Gfeller Laurie, LLP has begun a welcome blog series covering the risks of investing in structured settlement payment rights [ sometimes marketed as "pre-owned annuities"]  . Before investing money one must understand the upside AND the downside of a transaction, even if the possibility of the latter is remote.

With more and more individual investors seeking to do what had been the province of the hedge funds and large institutional investors (like insurance companies), together with questions of the applicability as a solution for funding parts of tort victim's needs, it is important that buyers representatives, buyers, attorneys, advisors and others have an appropriate level of understanding.

Vodola is an established attorney expert who represents life insurance companies that issue ( or have issued) structured settlement annuities, to assure (among other things) compliance with state structured settelment protection laws,  and to protect the interests of those companies in structured settlement factoring transactions. 

The first post in the series is entitled  When is a Court Order Not The Last Word? 

With respect to structured settlement factoring transactions, Vodola makes very clear that:

1. "What is not in dispute is that most structured settlement factoring transactions, since 2002, are effectuated via a court order".

2. "What is also not in dispute is that the VAST MAJORITY of court orders ARE the last word in the effectiveness of structured settlement factoring transactions.  Put another way, the orders remain in place, and the payments are paid in the manner spelled out in the orders".

Vodola correctly observes Wall Street Journal column from this summer may have hit a nerve, but makes an incorrect assumption about the impetus to my 3 post response.(here, here and here) and another one by Andrew Cravenho of Settlement Quotes.

My response to the Wall Street Journal article stands on its own and I encourage readers to read the links to the posts in Vodola's article, simply follow links to the same posts just above.

It's important to point out another thing that is not in dispute. Vodola HAS NOT said "Don't Do It!"

Yet one does not want to be part of the corollary to the "vast majority" cited above and I look forward to Pete Vodola's upcoming series.

Vodola and Scanlon Named Partners at Seiger Gfeller Laurie, LLP

Peter J. Vodola and Katherine A. Scanlon have been named partners at Seiger Gfeller Laurie, LLP. Formerly with Pullman Comley, LLP a good portion of their practice includes representing annuity issuers and/or qualified assignees when faced with petitions for structured settlement factoring transactions to assure compliance with the structured settlement protection acts in various jurisdictions.

Both active members of the NSSTA will be based out of Seiger Gfeller Laurie's West Hartford office.  The law firm also has offices in Manhattan and in Princeton, NJ.

Negotiations continue with respect to the disposition of the excellent Secondary Market Law blog established by Vodola and Scalan while at Pullman Comley. We'll know in the coming weeks whether that blog will continue under new coordinates or a new one will be established. Either way we look forward to the continued commentary.