A Structured Settlement – What It Is
When a claimant settles a legal case for a large amount of money then the defendant and the claimant’s legal counsel or financial advisor propose making the payments for damages in form of instalments over a period of time rather than as a lump sum of cash. When such a settlement is made it is referred to as a structured settlement.
It is advised that when employing a financial advisor or consultant to associate with such a settlement, you make sure that they are from a reputed company. Often the payments involved in a structured settlement are done by purchasing one or more, depending on the settlement amount, annuities that guarantee scheduled payments in the future.
Structured settlements can provide an income in any type of schedule that the parties involved agree to. For instance, the settlement money can be paid either in over a period of time in annual instalments or if the parties choose to it can be paid in lump sums every 5, 10, 15 years or whatever time period is decide upon.
Structured settlements can protect the claimant from having their funds of settlements dissipated especially when required to pay for future needs like medical expenses or education of their children etc. these type of settlements can also protect the claimant form themselves. Some people just cannot say ‘no’ to their ‘fair weather’ friends and relatives. Also a lump sum amount can be exhausted very rapidly if you aren’t good with money.
