Blog

White and Nadeau v. Symetra – Part 1

Several class action lawsuits, almost always settled without admission of liability, have nonetheless helped shape, and arguably have helped to improve, structured settlement business practices in the United States. Examples include: the Weil lawsuit ; Macomber v. Travelers; Spencer v. Hartford; and Griffiths v. Aviva. On Tuesday October 17, 2023, in Phoenix, a three-judge panel...

The Cordero Case – Part 3

Introduction Stephen Harris, who represented defendant Transamerica in the Cordero case, and prominent plaintiff attorney Edward Stone debated the Cordero case during the Society of Settlement Planners (SSP) Annual Conference on March 6, 2023 in Nashville. Their informative and entertaining Nashville presentation occurred prior to more recent decisions by the State of New York Court...

The Cordero Case

On March 14, 2023, the New York State Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the matter of Cordero v. Transamerica (Cordero Case) – a significant case for structured settlements because it challenges important assumptions about contractual rights and duties among settlement recipients, assignment companies and annuity providers. Plaintiff Lujerio Cordero (Cordero) is/was a structured settlement...

A Structured Settlement Interview with ChatGPT: An Introduction

Introduction ChatGPT is a chatbot developed by OpenAI and launched in November 2022. You can access a trial version for free. Using ChatGPT’s inquiry process, Independent Life received the unedited answers below to the indicated questions we submitted. *Independent Life does not claim to validate the accuracy, or lack thereof, of ChatGPT’s responses to Independent Life’s questions. Likewise,...

ChatGPT Discusses Qualified Settlement Funds (QSFs)

Introduction ChatGPT is a chatbot developed by OpenAI and launched in November 2022. You can access a trial version for free. Continuing a structured settlement discussion with Independent Life, ChatGPT responded to our questions below about Qualified Settlement Funds (QSFs)  as well as more general questions about Structured Settlements in this prior Independent Life article. *Independent Life does not...

Assignment of Rights or Delegation of Duties?

Introduction A single structured settlement often involves multiple areas of law – including tort, tax, contract, Social Security, insurance, to name just a few. Sometimes laws impacting a structured settlement not only overlap but also conflict thereby creating potential problems and/or confusion. For example, although structured settlement periodic payments generally are excluded from federal income...