How An Injury Settlement Can Affect College Financial Aid

Extra planning is particularly needed by parents of children receiving a financial settlement due to injury and who are approaching college age.

Personal Injury Cases: Structured Settlements as a Negotiating Tool

Structures are used in a variety of injury cases. The most common involve wrongful death, (especially if a surviving spouse or children need income), temporary or permanent disability and severe injuries with shortened life expectancy.

Protecting the Plaintiff with Medicare, Medi-Cal and SSI without Age or Income Restrictions In An Affordable Care Act Era

The most common way for a plaintiff to continue to receive Medi-Cal and SSI while also receiving settlement funds is to establish a first party individual Special Needs Trust (SNT) or enroll in a Pooled Special Needs Trust (Pooled SNT) also known as a Pooled Trust, PSNT or Master Trust.

Benefits of Small-Dollar Structured Settlements

Over the past 20 years, more than 50 percent of the structured settlements facilitated by Ringler Associates, a national structured settlements brokerage firm, were less than $50,000. Another approximately 17 percent were between $50,000 and $100,000. These figures are typical of most annuity brokerage firms.

Tax-Deferred Structures in Non-Traditional Cases [The Gavel, Summer 2011]

Attorneys are beginning to look beyond cases typically targeted for structured settlements and recommending the settlement option to clients in a number of non-traditional, non-physical injury recoveries. Almost any type of non-physical settlement can and is being structured.

Preserving Plaintiff’s Medi-Cal and Medicare Benefits [The Advocate - September 2011]

Settling a case can be a cumbersome, time consuming and a frustrating experience for all parties. When the complexities of public-benefit programs such as Medicare and Medi-Cal are added to the settlement mix, it’s no wonder plaintiff attorneys seek assistance in understand¬ing the necessary legal measures required to ensure their settlements comply with the law and protects their client’s current and future interests.

Structural Changes [Trial Magazine - June 2011]

Structured settlements and the laws governing them are ever-changing. Issues like how they are taxed, when they can be used, and whether they can be sold seem to be in a near constant state of flux. For plaintiff trial lawyers who are charged with properly advising their clients regarding settlement of their cases, this instability can be disconcerting, to say the least.

“For 30 years, structured settlements have provided injured people with long-term financial security and special tax benefits. How these settlements are used and funded is constantly evolving. Make sure you know all the options so you can build the best structure for your client.”

Age 65 and Over Settlements: Preserving the Elder Plaintiff’s SSI and Medi-Cal [CAOC Forum - Nov/Dec 2010]

Plaintiff attorneys face unique challenges when serving the needs of the injured elder population – those over the youthful age of sixty-four.

One difficult issue is that many elders qualify for and utilize needs-based public benefits like Supplemental Security Income