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 authorized in advance in a final order of a court of competent jurisdiction or responsible administrative authority, based on express findings by such court or responsible administrative authority that:

(1) The transfer complies with the requirements of this chapter and will not contravene other applicable law;

(2) Not less than 10 days prior to the date on which the payee first incurred any obligation with respect to the transfer, the transferee has provided to the payee a disclosure statement in bold type, no smaller than 14 points, setting forth:

a. The amounts and due dates of the structured settlement payments to be transferred;

b. The aggregate amount of such payments;

c. The discounted present value of such payments, together with the discount rate used in determining such discounted present value;

d. The gross amount payable to the payee in exchange for such payments;

e. An itemized listing of all brokers’ commissions, service charges, application fees, processing fees, closing costs, filing fees, administrative fees, legal fees, notary fees and other commissions, fees, costs, expenses and charges payable by the payee or deductible from the gross amount otherwise payable to the payee;

f. The net amount payable to the payee after deduction of all commissions, fees, costs, expenses and charges described in paragraph (2)e. of this section;

g. The quotient (expressed as a percentage) obtained by dividing the net payment amount by the discounted present value of the payments; and

h. The amount of any penalty and the aggregate amount of any liquidated damages (inclusive of penalties) payable by the payee in the event of any breach of the transfer agreement by the payee;

(3) The transfer is fair and reasonable and in the best interests of the payee and the payee’s dependents;

(4) The payee has received independent professional advice regarding the legal, tax and financial implications of the transfer;

(5) If the transfer would contravene the terms of the structured settlement:

a. The transfer has been expressly approved in writing by:

1. Each interested party; provided, however, that the approval of the annuity issuer and the structured settlement obligor shall not be required if all other interested parties approve the transfer and waive any and all rights to require that the transferred payments be made to the payee in accordance with the terms of the structured settlement; and

2. Any court or government authority, other than the court or responsible administrative authority from which authorization of the transfer is sought under this chapter, which previously approved the structured settlement; and

b. Signed originals of all approvals required under paragraph (5)a. of this section have been filed with the court or responsible administrative authority from which authorization of the transfer is sought under this chapter, and originals or copies have been furnished to all interested parties; and

(6) The transferee has given written notice of the transferee’s name, address and taxpayer identification number to the annuity issuer and the structured settlement obligor and has filed a copy of such notice with the court or responsible administrative authority.

72 Del. Laws, c. 303, § ?1;

Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6601

  • Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
  • Annuity issuer: shall mean an insurer that has issued an insurance contract used to fund periodic payments under a structured settlement;

    (2) "Applicable law" shall mean:

    a. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Dependents: shall include a payee's spouse and minor children and all other family members and other persons for whom the payee is legally obligated to provide support, including alimony;

    (4) "Discounted present value" shall mean the fair present value of future payments, as determined by discounting such payments to the present using the most recently published applicable federal rate for determining the present value of an annuity, as issued by the United States Internal Revenue Service;

    (5) "Favorable tax determination" shall mean, with respect to a proposed transfer of structured settlement payment rights, any of the following authorities that definitively establishes that the federal income tax treatment of the structured settlement for the parties to the structured settlement agreement and any qualified assignment agreement, other than the payee, will not be affected by such transfer:

    a. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Discounted present value: shall mean the fair present value of future payments, as determined by discounting such payments to the present using the most recently published applicable federal rate for determining the present value of an annuity, as issued by the United States Internal Revenue Service;

    (5) "Favorable tax determination" shall mean, with respect to a proposed transfer of structured settlement payment rights, any of the following authorities that definitively establishes that the federal income tax treatment of the structured settlement for the parties to the structured settlement agreement and any qualified assignment agreement, other than the payee, will not be affected by such transfer:

    a. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Interested parties: shall mean , with respect to any structured settlement, the payee, any beneficiary designated under the annuity contract to receive payments following the payee's death, the annuity issuer, the structured settlement obligor, and any other party that has continuing rights or obligations under such structured settlement;

    (9) "Payee" shall mean an individual who is receiving tax-free damage payments under a structured settlement and proposes to make a transfer of payment rights thereunder;

    (10) "Qualified assignment agreement" shall mean an agreement providing for a qualified assignment within the meaning of § 130 of the United States Internal Revenue Code, United States Code Title 26 (26 U. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Responsible administrative authority: shall mean , with respect to a structured settlement, any government authority vested by law with exclusive jurisdiction over the settled claim resolved by such structured settlement;

    (12) "Settled claim" shall mean the original tort claim or workers' compensation claim resolved by a structured settlement;

    (13) "Structured settlement" shall mean an arrangement for periodic payment of damages for personal injuries established by settlement or judgment in resolution of a tort claim or for periodic payments in settlement of a workers' compensation claim;

    (14) "Structured settlement agreement" shall mean the agreement, judgment, stipulation or release embodying the terms of a structured settlement, including the rights of the payee to receive periodic payments;

    (15) "Structured settlement obligor" shall mean, with respect to any structured settlement, the party that has the continuing periodic payment obligation to the payee under a structured settlement agreement or a qualified assignment agreement;

    (16) "Structured settlement payment rights" shall mean rights to receive periodic payments (including lump sum payments) under a structured settlement, whether from the settlement obligor or the annuity issuer, where:

    a. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • Terms of the structured settlement: shall include , with respect to any structured settlement, the terms of the structured settlement agreement, the annuity contract, any qualified assignment agreement and any order or approval of any court or responsible administrative authority or other government authority authorizing or approving such structured settlement;

    (18) "Transfer" shall mean any sale, assignment, pledge, hypothecation or other form of alienation or encumbrance made by a payee for consideration;

    (19) "Transfer agreement" shall mean the agreement providing for transfer of structured settlement payment rights from a payee to a transferee; and

    (20) "Transferee" or "payor" shall mean the person, firm or entity purchasing or receiving the assignment, pledge, hypothecation or other form of alienation or encumbrance made by a payee for consideration under a structured settlement agreement. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602

  • Transfer: shall mean any sale, assignment, pledge, hypothecation or other form of alienation or encumbrance made by a payee for consideration;

    (19) "Transfer agreement" shall mean the agreement providing for transfer of structured settlement payment rights from a payee to a transferee; and

    (20) "Transferee" or "payor" shall mean the person, firm or entity purchasing or receiving the assignment, pledge, hypothecation or other form of alienation or encumbrance made by a payee for consideration under a structured settlement agreement. See Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 6602