Colonial pays cash for structured settlements!

New Jersey statues regarding Structured Settlements. This state statute overseeing the sale of structured settlement payments and the buying of annuities is basically the Model Act and complies with Federal Law (Colonial's interpretation) NEW JERSEY STATUTES ANNOTATED TITLE 2A. ADMINISTRATION OF CIVIL AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE SUBTITLE 4. CIVIL ACTIONS CHAPTER 16. JUDGMENTS IN CIVIL ACTIONS ARTICLE 10. STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS Current through L.2002, c. 25

<< Return to State Index  |  << Return to Part 1

2A:16-66. Court or administrative approval of transfer

No direct or indirect transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall be effective and no structured settlement obligor or annuity issuer shall be required to make any payment directly or indirectly to any transferee of structured settlement payment rights unless the transfer has been approved in advance in a final court order or order of a responsible administrative authority based on express findings by the court or responsible administrative authority that:

a. the transfer is in the best interest of the payee, taking into account the welfare and support of the payee's dependents;

b. the payee has been advised in writing by the transferee to seek independent professional advice regarding the transfer and has either received the advice or knowingly waived the right to seek that advice in writing; and

c. the transfer does not contravene any applicable statute or the order of any court or other government authority.

2A:16-67. Release of obligor and annuity issuer from liability for transferred payments

Following a transfer of structured settlement payment rights under this act:

a. The structured settlement obligor and the annuity issuer shall, as to all parties except the transferee, be discharged and released from any and all liability for the transferred payments;

b. The transferee shall be liable to the structured settlement obligor and the annuity issuer:

(1) if the transfer contravenes the terms of the structured settlement, for any taxes incurred by those parties as a consequence of the transfer; and

(2) for any other liabilities or costs, including reasonable costs and attorneys' fees, arising from compliance by those parties with the order of the court or responsible administrative authority or arising as a consequence of the transferee's failure to comply with this act;

c. Neither the annuity issuer nor the structured settlement obligor shall be required to divide any periodic payment between the payee and any transferee or assignee or between two or more transferees or assignees; and

d. Any further transfer of structured settlement payment rights by the payee shall be made in compliance with all of the requirements of this act.

2A:16-68. Application for approval

a. An application under this act to a court or responsible administrative authority for approval of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall be made by the transferee and may be brought in the jurisdiction in which the payee resides, in the jurisdiction in which the structured settlement obligor or the annuity issuer maintains its principal place of business, or in any court or before any responsible administrative authority which approved the structured settlement agreement.

b. Not less than 20 days prior to the scheduled hearing on any application for approval of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights under section 4 of this act, the transferee shall file with the court or responsible administrative authority and serve on all interested parties a notice of the proposed transfer and the application for its authorization, including with the notice:

(1) a copy of the transferee's application;

(2) a copy of the transfer agreement;

(3) a copy of the disclosure statement required under section 3 of this act;

(4) a listing of each of the payee's dependents, together with each dependent's age;

(5) notification that any interested party is entitled to support, oppose or otherwise respond to the transferee's application, either in person or by counsel, by submitting written comments to the court or responsible administrative authority or by participating in the hearing; and

(6) notification of the time and place of the hearing and notification of the manner in which, and the time by which, written responses to the application shall be filed, which shall be not less than 15 days after service of the transferee's notice, in order to be considered by the court or responsible administrative authority.

2A:16-69. Waiver; disputes; life-contingent payments; liability for failure of transfer to satisfy statutory conditions; transfer of rights in contravention of law; compliance with statutory conditions

a. The provisions of this act shall not be waived by any payee.

b. Any transfer agreement entered into on or after the effective date of this act by a payee who resides in this State shall provide that disputes under the transfer agreement, including any claim that the payee has breached the agreement, shall be determined in and under the laws of this State. No transfer agreement shall authorize the transferee or any other party to confess judgment or consent to entry of judgment against the payee.

c. No transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall extend to any payments that are life-contingent unless, prior to the date on which the payee signs the transfer agreement, the transferee has established and has agreed to maintain procedures reasonably satisfactory to the annuity issuer and the structured settlement obligor for: (1) periodically confirming the payee's survival; and (2) giving the annuity issuer and the structured settlement obligor prompt written notice in the event of the payee's death.

d. No payee who proposes to make a transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall incur any penalty, forfeit any application fee or other payment, or otherwise incur any liability to the proposed transferee or any assignee based on any failure of the transfer to satisfy the conditions of this act.

e. Nothing contained in this act shall be construed to authorize any transfer of structured settlement payment rights in contravention of any law or to imply that any transfer under a transfer agreement entered into prior to the effective date of this act is valid or invalid.

f. Compliance with the requirements set forth in section 3 of this act and fulfillment of the conditions set forth in section 4 of this act shall be solely the responsibility of the transferee in any transfer of structured settlement payment rights, and neither the structured settlement obligor nor the annuity issuer shall bear any responsibility for, or any liability arising from, non-compliance with those requirements or failure to fulfill those conditions.

<< Return to State Index  |  << Return to Part 1