Structured Settlement

Structured settlements are a financial or insurance arrangement, including periodic payments, that a claimant accepts to resolve a personal injury claim or to compromise a statutory periodic payment obligation. Structured settlements were first utilized in Canada and the United States during the 1970s as an alternative to lump sum settlements. Structured settlements are now part of the statutory tort law of several common law countries including: Australia, Canada, England and the United States. Although some uniformity exists, each of these countries has its own definitions, rules and standards for structured settlement. Structured settlements may include income tax and spendthrift requirements as well as benefits. Structured settlement payments are sometimes called “periodic payments”. A structured settlement incorporated into a trial judgment is called a “periodic payment judgment”.

Structured Settlements in the United States
The United States has enacted structured settlement laws and regulations at both the federal and state levels. Federal structured settlement laws include sections of the Federal Internal Revenue Code. State structured settlement laws include structured settlement protection statutes and periodic payment of judgment statutes. Medicaid and Medicare laws and regulations impact structured settlements. To preserve a claimant’s Medicare and Medicaid benefits, structured settlement payments may be incorporated into “Medicare Set Aside Arrangements” and “Special Needs Trusts”.

Resources for Structures Settlements:
www.nssta.com
www.settlementpurchasers.com
www.legal-definitions.com/structured-settlements.htm
www.structuredsettlements.org

Can a claimant refuse a structured settlement? A Mesothelioma victim for example should really take the money upfront.

In most states in this country, claimants can certainly choose not to accept a structure, although exceptions are beginning to appear. A serious inury victim does not necessarily desire up-front money. In many cases, the structure will guarantee payments to the benficiaries for many decades. A good attorney will find a top quality structure broker who will be able to find such a structure, and take full advantage by securing a rated life expectancy.

__________________
Joe

KaneCrumley@comcast.net
763-551-2551


Kane Crumley Law Firm
12805 Highway 55
Suite 208
Plymouth, MN 55441

Serious Personal Injury and Wrongful Death
Licensed in Minnesota and Wisconsin
Civil Trial Specialist certified by the NBTA & MSBA

If this e-mail wasn't intended for you, you are obligated to delete it and return it to the sender. The courts and ethical boards prohibit the retention or use of misdirected or stolen e-mails.

When you can choose between a structured settlement and a lump sum, be sure to investigate the proposed structured settlement before agreeing to it - it can sound like more money, as the raw total of the payments will exceed a lump sum payment. But when reduced to its present value (that is, when you consider what amount of money in your hand would produce the total of the proposed structured settlement over time) it can be significantly less. Also, for a large settlement, you have to be careful not to put all your eggs in one basket - to consider getting the annuities underlying the structured settlement from reliable companies, and dividing the settlement between several companies in case one goes bankrupt.

You can sell a structured settlement, but if you have any inclination to do so you are usually going to do much better by getting an up-front lump sum settlement.

__________________
Find Legal Help - Find Legal Advice