Litigation

Peach Holdings Gets S&P Upgrade to CCC+ (Outlook Negative), Senior Secured to CCC-

Posted on August 27, 2009
Standard & Poors issued new credit ratings on Peach Holdings, the parent of cash now pusher Peachtree Settlement Funding on August 26, 2009. As stated on the Standard & Poors website, an obligation rated 'CCC' is currently vulnerable to nonpayment,...

Will's "Financial Literacy Lesson" LOL ... Why Factoring Company Sales Reps Strike Out

Posted on August 27, 2009
From the mouths of one of Stone Street Capital's "brightest" "One question we hear rather regularly is what is the difference between a ?structured settlement? and an annuity. A ?structured settlement? is defined as a tax advantaged financial settlement awarded...

Bentzen Funding Blog No "Servicing" Comments BUT One "Juicy" Gossip Entry

Posted on August 26, 2009
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...

Larger Factoring Companies To Suffer Financial Squeeze?

Posted on August 26, 2009
Something notable is going on in the factoring world. Yesterday I was approached by someone purporting to represent a group of investors with $200 million to invest in structure settlement factoring deals. Needless to say I quickly issued my rebuff.....

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Adjuster of No Fault MAY NOT Share Non Public Medical With 3rd Party Adjuster of Affiliate

Posted on August 26, 2009
The New York Insurance Department Office of General Counsel has issued a new opinion that may impact structured settlement practice, particular those intermediaries who work with affilated auto insurers on two sides of a claim, where one handles the 1st...

Practice Strategic Intelligence In The Use of Plaxo BEFORE You Connect

Posted on August 25, 2009
The online social networks phenomenon be great for business but it can also hurt your business if you're not careful. Would you give your competitor a window into your client and/or contact list? If you add a competitor to your...

Hindert Inert on Structured Settlement Servicing by Factoring Companies

Posted on August 25, 2009
Patrick Hindert has variously commented on JG Wentworth as "structured settlement thought leaders", "focusing on the needs and best interests of consumers". What Hindert has never discussed, however, is what our sources tell us is the business practice of structured...

Fairfield Funding...Cash Now Pusher Pulls Slime Ball Move Against Ringler, EPS, Millennium, Settlement Professionals

Posted on August 24, 2009
Fairfield Funding has an "A-" from the Better Business Bureau. But perhaps not for long. You see Fairfield Funding, a less than one year old cash now pusher out of Atlanta, is not going to win too many friends using...

WHY Won't BBB Atlanta Look At Fairfield Funding Complaint???

Posted on August 24, 2009
The BBB Code of Business Practices represents sound advertising, selling and customer service practices that enhance customer trust and confidence in business. The Code is built on the BBB Standards for Trust, eight principles that summarize important elements of creating...

Structured Settlement Payments: The Label "Guarantee" Comes With Caveat

Posted on August 24, 2009
Be careful how you use the word "guarantee" when expressing structured settlement payments in documents or sales presentations. While a number of people and at least one life insurance company's quoting software continue use the term "guaranteed" in connection with...

Effective Date of Structured Settlement Agreements and Releases

Posted on August 24, 2009
** I'm astonished by the number of times my industry colleagues representing certain insurance companies employ the cookie cutter approach to structured settlement documents. The cookie cutter documents are bastardized versions of what was commonplace 20 years ago...

Imperial Structured Settlements Lays More Inconsistencies on Potential Customers!

Posted on August 23, 2009
What kind of eggs is Imperial Structured Settlements laying? "Our team has a combined 25+ years of industry experience. We made history by revolutionizing the time required for the Structured Settlement process by shortening it from 120 days down to....

Largest Number Of Bank Failures since 1992, BUT Still No Structured Annuity Issuers

Posted on August 23, 2009
Rising loan defaults spurred by tumbling home prices and spiking unemployment have done in another 4 banks. The failure of Austin, TX based Guaranty bank, which was announced on Friday, along with failure of three small banks in Georgia and...

Imperial Structured Settlements' Mortgage Contest Inconsistencies

Posted on August 22, 2009
I've "Ben-Eyeing" Imperial Structured Settlements latest contest where a winner is randomly selected to have their mortgage paid by Imperial for a period of 1.5 months up to a limit of well, uh, that's the point I'll be getting to....

Structured Settlement Guide Features Notorious Structured Settlement Misinformant Chris Padgett

Posted on August 21, 2009
Last September I excoriated Chris Padgett for misinforming the public that structured settlement were used by lottery winners. Today he "retains his form "on structuredsettlements-guide.com in the case of "if you don't do your research and seek the easy Google...

Settlement Industry Marketing to Lawyers Over the Top- Exhibit 1

Posted on August 21, 2009
Marketing Claim "How many structured settlements have you been involved with in the past 10 years in which the annuity was funded through the life insurance company affiliate of the casualty insurer? Is it likely that the affiliate life market...

Veteran Publishes "Belly Flop" on Key Structured Settlement Fundamental

Posted on August 21, 2009
Geez when I read this "belly flop" from someone I understand to be one of the leading all time settlement producers in the industry I almost fell off my chair: "For defendants, structured settlements allow payment guarantees and obligations to...

A Lump Sum Structured Settlement ANNUITY COMPANY? Don't Believe These Liars!

Posted on August 21, 2009
Attention insurance regulators, the folks at Stone Street Capital are advertising that they are a "leading lump sum structured settlement annuity company" Off to Structured Settlement Aper's Pillory goes Stone Street Capital The Stone Street Capital reputation has now come...

California Law Firm's Structured Settlement FAQ Needs Work

Posted on August 20, 2009
What are the Disadvantages of a Structured Settlement? Spray Gould Bowers, LLP If the plaintiff retains too much control over the proceeds, the IRS may look at the situation and decide that the tax benefit must be forfeited. Comment Huh?...

A "Will" In Sheep's Clothing!

Posted on August 20, 2009
Acting in contrast to his company's Teletubby like spokes creature, Stone Street Capital's "Will in Sheep's Clothing" suggests that it is "likely a prudent step" for those who are receiving structured settlement payments "to find out what their payments might...

Structured Settlement Blog Milestone: 2,000 Posts and Counting!

Posted on August 20, 2009
On August 19, 2009 Structured Settlements 4Real hit the 2,000 post mark. It took a little less than 26 months for Structured Settlements 4Real to hit the 1,000 post milestone. It has taken only 18 more months for Structured Settlements...

Facebook and Your Career-2

Posted on August 20, 2009
The other day I posted about how lack of discrimination in status updates on social networks such as Facebook and Twitter that are copied to members of your industry or clients can affect your career and/or reputation. In another twist...

Structured Settlement Websites Experience Increased Traffic in August 2009 survey

Posted on August 20, 2009
Three Month Trailing Top 10 Traffic Rank (Alexa Rank as of 08/20/2009) of Structured Settlement and Settlement Planning Industry websites* (+ or- traffic from 07/24/2009 report). Lower number means more traffic (e.g. Google.com is ranked 1 in the overall scheme)...

A Few Settlement Brokers' "Ethical Skirts" on Lock Ins Could Lead to Changes

Posted on August 20, 2009
According to our sources it HAS been noticed that some structured settlement brokers and settlement planners have a pattern of locking in "any old benefit" to preserve a rate series and then opportunistically taking advantage of the life insurer by...

Structured Settlement Annuity Contract and Servicing Issues-1

Posted on August 19, 2009
With all the modern technology available one wonders why the majority of the companies issuing structured settlement contracts have not made use of an alert system to their appointed brokers. When a case is submitted to the annuity issuer it...

Which "Cash Now Pushers" Are Having Trouble Funding Deals Right Now?

Posted on August 19, 2009
Perhaps it's the case of survival of the fittest, but the word on the street is that a number of factoring companies that are promoting the "cash now" fraud while allegedly, behind the scenes, they having great difficulty funding their...

Courts Should Impose Sanctions on Factoring Company Lawyers Who Are Ill Prepared to Defend "Best Interest" Test

Posted on August 18, 2009
After reading some of the decisions made by judges around the country where a structured settlement factoring transaction was determined to fail "the best interest" test, it is evident that neither the factoring company or their legal counsel was adequately...

Factoring Industry "Financial Planning" for Tort Victims

Posted on August 18, 2009
Based on what appears on a factoring company website, the following 5 questions represent the extent of "delving for details" before "getting the (structured settlement factoring) transaction rolling". GENERAL INFORMATION Client Name: ________________________________________________ Address: ___________________________________________________ Phone Number: ____________ Best Time...

Financial Ratings of Structured Settlement Companies

Posted on August 18, 2009
Looking for insurance company ratings for the structured settlement you are contemplating for you, a loved one, or a client? 4structures.com, LLC has compiled a helpful chart which shows the life insurance companies who currently write structured settlements funded with...

Facebook and Your Career

Posted on August 17, 2009
PC World has an excellent article entitled "Facebook Etiquette: 10 Rules for Better Socializing" One excerpt in particularly rings out: "Oversharing on Facebook can be a problem. Every meal eaten, every TV show experienced, and every weather condition observed need...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.