Illinois Structured Settlement Protection Act – revised

Revisions to the Illinois Structured Settlement Protection Act, 5 ILCS 153/1 went into effect last month in the wake of Settlement Funding, LLC v. Brenston, 998 N.E. 2d 111 (Ill. App. Ct. 2013) where the Illinois Appellate Court held that the trial court erred in permitting a transfer where the settlement agreement contained an anti-assignment clause […]

Judicial Reforms for Structured Settlements in Maryland

The Washington Post reported that “Prince George County Circuit Court has implemented significant reforms” in its handling of structured settlement payment petitions filed pursuant to the Maryland Structured Settlement Protection Act. All sellers and their independent advisors must now appear at the hearings, and all petitions must be filed using the seller’s full name, rather […]

Bill Introduced in District of Columbia on Structured Settlements

Council members Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3), Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), Anita Bonds (D-At Large), David Grosso (I-At Large) and Brandon T. Todd (D-Ward 4) introduced a structured settlement protection act to protect District of Columbia residents seeking to sell their structured settlement payment streams. While we agree with the op-ed in The Washington Post on September 11, 2015 […]

Media coverage of structured settlement industry continues

National media coverage of the practices of the structured settlement factoring industry has continued, with MSNBC airing a lengthy segment by reporter Melissa Harris-Perry on August 30, 2015.  The segment included a discussion with reporter Terrence McCoy of The Washington Post, Judith Browne Dianis, noted civil rights attorney and Co-Director of the Advancement Project, E.J. […]

Members of Congress seek investigation into factoring industry

In the wake of The Washington Post article by Terrence McCoy on the exploitation of lead-poisoning victims by the structured settlement factoring industry, Rep. Louise M. Slaughter (D-NY), Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) have called for an investigation into the practices of the companies that buy lawsuit settlements at steep discount rates […]

Article Highlights Problems Plaguing Structured Settlements

A recent article in The Washington Post by Terrence McCoy “How companies make millions off lead-poisoned, poor blacks” highlights the problems plaguing the structured settlement factoring industry, where recipients of structured settlements are often urged to “sell” their payment streams in exchange for lump sums of cash at steep discount rates.  Structured settlement protection acts […]

Structured Settlement Fraud

Two Edward Stone Law cases were featured prominently in today’s Wall Street Journal – “Firms Help Settlement Holders Cash Out Payments Meant to Last a Lifetime”.  What the WSJ article fails to describe is the high pressure predatory sales tactics used to raid large structured settlement annuities that were intended to last a lifetime.  The […]