Litigation

August Fools!

Barely filling the gossip void from May, Rhonda Bentzen informs us that North Carolina's Tacker Le Carpentier has switched structured settlement brokerages.

Now if Bentzen could just contribute to the settlement industry with a modicum more than gossip by:

1. Publicly revoking her December 12, 2007 statement that 90% of her clients take payments on structured settlement factoring transactions placed through her brokerage and stating in writing the current percentage of structured settlement industry members who are taking the payments that she offers and pays. Surely it is the public interest to know that the vig problem is no longer as widespread as she made it out to be less than 2 years ago, IF it is true.
2. Contributing to the important discussion of factoring company servicing of structured settlement payment rights. Since Bentzen's funding source, Structured Asset Funding,  is a company that engages in servicing, can she can shed some light on what happens to the payments of those who sell only a part of their structured settlement payments to  Bentzen, or SAF, that are serviced by SAF if Structured Asset Funding goes belly up? What steps has Bentzen taken, if any to protect the clients of structured settlement industry brokers and settlement planners who have elected to do business with her in the event of the insolvency or bankruptcy of the servicing company?
3. Identify which life insurance companies are "refusing to split structured settlement payments" with Bentzen and/or Structured Asset Funding so that the issue may be addressed with these companies AND so that settlement planners can inform their clients, in advance. Bentzen's allegation concerning the life companies is consistent with some factoring representatives but inconsistent with others.

And of course, the "ghosts" of McCarthy and Brandeis need to know.