TITLE 27

Insurance

CHAPTER 27-9.3

State Structured Settlement Protection Act

SECTION 27-9.3-2



   § 27-9.3-2  Definitions. –

For purposes of this chapter:



   (1) "Annuity issuer" means an insurer that has issued a

contract to fund periodic payments under a structured settlement;



   (2) "Dependents" includes a payee's spouse and minor children

and all other persons for whom the payee is legally obligated to provide

support, including alimony;



   (3) "Discounted present value" means the present value of

future payments determined by discounting the 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;



   (4) "Gross advance amount" means the sum payable to the payee

or for the payee's account as consideration for a transfer of structured

settlement payment rights before any reductions for transfer expenses or other

deductions to be made from the consideration;



   (5) "Independent parties" means, with respect to any

structured settlement, the payee, any beneficiary irrevocably 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 the structured settlement;



   (6) "Independent professional advice" means advice of an

attorney, certified public accountant, actuary or other licensed professional

adviser;



   (7) "Net advance amount" means the gross advance amount less

the aggregate amount of the actual and estimated transfer expenses required to

be disclosed under § 27-9.3-3(5);



   (8) "Payee" means an individual who is receiving tax-free

payments under a structured settlement and proposes to make a transfer of

payment rights under the settlement;



   (9) "Periodic payments" includes both recurring payments and

scheduled future lump sum payments;



   (10) "Qualified assignment agreement" means an agreement

providing for a qualified assignment within the meaning of Section 130 of the

United States Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. § 130;



   (11) "Responsible administrative authority" means, with

respect to a structured settlement, any government authority vested by law with

exclusive jurisdiction over the settled claim resolved by the structured

settlement;



   (12) "Settled claim" means the original tort claim or

workers' compensation claim resolved by a structured settlement;



   (13) "Structured settlement" means an arrangement for

periodic payment of damages for personal injuries or sickness 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" means the agreement,

judgment, stipulation, or release embodying the terms of a structured

settlement;



   (15) "Structured settlement obligor" means, with respect to

any structured settlement, the party has the continuing obligation to make

periodic payments to the payee under a structured settlement agreement or a

qualified assignment agreement;



   (16) "Structured settlement payment rights" means rights to

receive periodic payments under a structured settlement, whether from the

structured settlement obligor or the annuity issuer, where:



   (i) The payee is domiciled in, or the domicile or principal

place of business of the structured settlement obligor or the annuity issuer is

located in, this state; or



   (ii) The structured settlement agreement was approved by a

court or responsible administrative authority in this state; or



   (iii) The structured settlement agreement is expressly

governed by the laws of this state;



   (17) "Terms of the structured settlement" includes, with

respect to any structured settlement, the terms of the structured settlement

agreement, the annuity contract, any qualified assignment agreement and any

order or other approval of any court or responsible administrative authority or

other government authority that authorized or approved the structured

settlement;



   (18) "Transfer" means any sale, assignment, pledge,

hypothecation or another alienation or encumbrance of structured settlement

payment rights made by a payee for consideration; provided that the term

"transfer" does not include the creation or perfection of a security interest

in structured settlement payment rights under a blanket security agreement

entered into with an insured depository institution, in the absence of any

action to redirect the structured settlement payments to an insured depository

institution, or an agent or successor in interest of an insured depository

institution, or to enforce the blanket security interest against the structured

settlement payment rights;



   (19) "Transfer agreement" means the agreement providing for a

transfer of structured settlement payment rights;



   (20) "Transfer expenses" means all expenses of a transfer

that are required under the transfer agreement to be paid by the payee or

deducted from the gross advance amount, including, without limitation, court

filing fees, attorneys' fees, escrow fees, lien recordation fees, judgment and

lien search fees, finders' fees, commissions, and other payments to a broker or

other intermediary; "transfer expenses" do not include preexisting obligations

of the payee payable for the payee' s account from the proceeds of a transfer;



   (21) "Transferee" means a party acquiring or proposing to

acquire structured settlement payment rights through a transfer.



History of Section.

(P.L. 2001, ch. 226, § 1.)