by Structured Settlement Watchdog®
Sixteen years ago James Terlizzi , then Peachtree Chief Operating Officer, compared structured settlements to a game of "three card Monte" in a Business Insurance article he entitled " Exposing Structured Settlement 'Scams'. Was it prescience or self-serving misdirection?
Terlizzi's now CEO of DRB Capital stated about then proposed structured settlement protection measures (now approved in almost all states) "While masquerading as consumer protection measures, the legislation being advanced by the insurers is, in reality, a ban on the practice of refinancing or selling one's settlement payments. Because of their massive financial and political clout, the three-card monte dealers and their shills-the insurers and the structured settlement brokers-are trying to pass laws to keep the police-the settlement purchasers-off their block and out of their way. They don't want anyone telling the public about their scam".
He went on to say "in an effort to end the practices of the insurance industry's equivalent of three-card monte dealers, the settlement purchase industry is standing up to the insurers and opposing their efforts in courtrooms and legislatures around the country"
Who's the 'three card monte'' dealer now?
- In the interim James Terlizzi's claims been undermined by the outrageous business conduct of companies and individuals in his own settlement purchasing industry, including one under his leadership, running circles around the consumer protection legislation that he crowed about and was subsequently passed. On August 26, 2013 a three judge panel of the Appellate court of Illinois in Settlement Funding LLC v Brenston* ruled that three trial court orders entered in 2007 and 2008, a time that James Terlizzi was Peachtree CEO, were procured by fraud. The Appellate Court of Illinois stated "we find the actions and omissions of Settlement Funding (Peachtree) to be beyond troubling".
- A year ago Washington Post reporter Terrence McCoy's award winning expose of the exploitation of Baltimore lead paint afflicted structured settlement annuitants was published. The story exposed an alleged scam involving settlement purchasers, lawyers involved with a Maryland settlement purchaser and independent professional advisors. The Washington Post articles increased awareness that led to Maryland Structured Settlement Protection reforms , a Maryland Attorney General investigation and lawsuit against certain settlement purchasing firms and their principals., that settlement purchasing firm's lawyers and certain independent professional advisers.
- Less than a year ago a 19 year old young man was financially raped by Novation Funding as Novation and/or its investors took an estimated $1.4 profit spread off the young lad while it continues to advertise maximum payouts and misdirect sellers attention with more stories about the remarkable adaptive triathlete Hector Picard,who they sponsor than their own business. Research into a Jose Camacho forged order scandal revealed a Novation deal handled by Camacho with a 48.6% discount rate.
- As case after case is exposed from the Sumter County and Portsmouth Virginia and other forum shopping hubs closer scrutiny will reveal just how badly annuitants have been scammed by structured settlement factoring companies. Let's see what happens.
*Settlement Funding, LLC v. Brenston, IL. App. (4th Dist.) No. 4-12- 0869, 2013 IL App. (4 th ) 120869, 2013 WL 4517159 (Aug. 26, 2013)