WASHINGTON, Nov. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The structured settlements purchasing sector has seen important legislation advance this year as lawmakers in several states work, in consultations with the industry, to craft and pass bills that increase standards and inject greater transparency for consumers.
The National Association of Settlement Purchasers has grown its presence around the country, and continues to promote industry best practices. This year, NASP has expanded its footprint to include Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, and Washington D.C.
On the legislative front, NASP actively sought and advocated for the enactment of the improved Illinois Structured Settlement Protection Act. It requires sellers of settlements to personally appear at the hearing on the application, and also strengthens the disclosure language around settlement transfers.
Also in 2015, the Wisconsin State Senate passed AB 129, a bill that was the product of over 18 months of work on the part of NASP and the Wisconsin legislature. This bill sets standards and disclosure requirements in the judicial review of structured settlement payment transfer rights in the state of Wisconsin. With its passage, Wisconsin will join the 48 states that have signed structured settlement transfer statutes into law, protecting consumers and bringing further transparency and disclosure into the secondary market.
NASP has been a leader in setting these standards and implementing best practices for the structured settlement purchasers industry ever since the evolution of the secondary market. Prior to and since the passage of federal legislation in 2002 that established criteria for transfers of structured settlements, NASP has worked tirelessly to adopt and standardize the National Conference of Insurance Legislators' Model Transfer Statute at the state level.
NASP has secured sponsors for legislation in Maryland, Virginia and Florida that includes disclosure requirements for beneficiaries, mandates court approval of transfers across the state, personal appearance in court by the payee, filing of applications in the county of residence of the payee and additional transaction disclosures and transparency requirements.
NASP supports greater transparency in the secondary market for structured settlements, and will continue to advocate for, and support, state-level legislation that improves standardization and transparency across the industry.
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SOURCE National Association of Settlement Purchasers
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