by Structured Settlement Watchdog®
Some cash now pushers capitalize on desperation to encourage sellers to commit fraud on the court through a process known as forum shopping
In the forum shopping fraud, only made possible by the lack of regulation. the annuitant is asked by agents of the settlement purchaser if they have any relatives in a "friendly" state like Florida. Operatives of the settlement purchaser are not discouraged by the possibility that the relative is someone they may have had little contact with, or possibly haven't seen in over a decade. Then it is arranged for the annuitant to come to Florida for a day or typically a short time during which, with the coaching and facilitation of the factoring company version of the fixer "Wexter Wolf" from 1994's Pulp Fiction (below), they take steps to camouflage the truth so if John Q. Judge from Broward or Sumter County "sticks his/her big snout in (at a transfer hearing) at a glance everything will appear to be normal" .
Annuitants continue to reach out to me with stories about what they have been encouraged/or coached to to do. Some report that they have been compensated using gift cards. We have other sources as well.
Unless and until there are serious consequences to all who participate in what the settlement purchasers are doing, the fraud will continue to go on
Forum shopping could also lead to an unwind of structured settlement factoring transactions for failure to comply with the state structured settlement transfer act and an imposition of federal excise taxes on the settlement purchaser. There may be consequences to investors in deals that have been concluded on the basis of out of state forum shopping fraud.