Colonial pays cash for structured settlements!

New Mexico statues regarding Structured Settlements. This state statute overseeing the sale of structured settlement payments and the buying of annuities is not the Model Act but complies with Federal Law (Colonial's interpretation) 2005 House Bill 495 AN ACT RELATING TO CIVIL LAW; ENACTING THE STRUCTURED SETTLEMENT PROTECTION ACT.
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    Section 4. APPROVAL OF TRANSFERS OF STRUCTURED SETTLEMENT PAYMENT RIGHTS.--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 based on express findings by the court 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 advice in writing; and
        C. the transfer does not contravene any applicable statute or an order of any court or other governmental authority.

    Section 5. EFFECTS OF TRANSFER OF STRUCTURED SETTLEMENT PAYMENT RIGHTS.--Following a transfer of structured settlement payment rights pursuant to the Structured Settlement Protection 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) for any taxes incurred by the parties as a consequence of the transfer if the transfer contravenes the terms of the structured settlement; and
            (2) for any other liabilities or costs, including reasonable costs and attorney fees, arising from compliance by the parties with the order of the court or arising as a consequence of the transferee’s failure to comply with the provisions of the Structured Settlement Protection Act;
        C. the transferee shall be liable to the payee:
            (1) if the transfer contravenes the terms of the structured settlement, for any taxes incurred by the payee as a consequence of the transfer; and
            (2) for any other liabilities or costs,
including reasonable costs and attorney fees, arising as a consequence of the transferee’s failure to comply with the provisions of the Structured Settlement Protection Act;
        D. neither the structured settlement obligor nor the annuity issuer may be required to divide any periodic payment between the payee and any transferee or assignee or between two or more transferees or assignees; and
        E. any further transfer of structured settlement payment rights by the payee may be made only after compliance with all of the requirements of the Structured Settlement Protection Act.

    Section 6. PROCEDURE FOR APPROVAL OF TRANSFERS.-
        A. An application under the Structured Settlement Protection Act for approval of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall be made by the transferee and shall be brought in court.
        B. At least twenty days before the date of the scheduled hearing on any application for approval of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights under Section 4 of the Structured Settlement Protection Act, the transferee shall file with the court and serve on all interested parties a notice of the proposed transfer and the application for 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 the Structured Settlement Protection Act;
            (4) a listing of each of the payee’s dependents, together with each dependent’s age;
            (5) notice 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 by participating in the hearing; and
            (6) notice 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 must be filed to be considered by the court.
        C. Written responses to the application under Paragraph (6) of Subsection B of this section shall be filed on or before the fifteenth day after the date the transferee’s notice is served.

    Section 7. GENERAL PROVISIONS-CONSTRUCTION-
        A. The provisions of the Structured Settlement Protection Act shall not be waived by any payee.
        B. Any transfer agreement entered into 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. The transfer agreement shall not authorize the transferee or any other party to confess
judgment or consent to entry of judgment against the payee.
        C. Transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall not 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 agreed to maintain procedures reasonably satisfactory to the structured settlement obligor and the annuity issuer for:
            (1) periodically confirming the payee’s survival; and
            (2) giving the structured settlement obligor and the annuity issuer prompt written notice in the event of the payee’s death.
        D. A payee who proposes to make a transfer of structured settlement payment rights shall not 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 the Structured Settlement Protection Act.
        E. Nothing contained in the Structured Settlement Protection Act may 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 before July 1, 2005 is valid or invalid.
        F. Compliance with the requirements in Section 3 of the Structured Settlement Protection Act and fulfillment of the conditions in Section 4 of that act are solely the responsibility of the transferee in any transfer of structured settlement payment rights, and neither the structured settlement obligor nor the annuity issuer bears any responsibility for, or any liability arising from, noncompliance with the requirements or failure to fulfill the conditions.

    Section 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2005.

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