Structured Settlements 4Real®Blog 2026
Structured settlements expert John Darer reviews the latest structured settlements and settlement planning information and news, and provides expert opinion and highly regarded commentary. that is spicy, Informative, irreverent and effective for over 20 years.
recent posts
- 🔥Founder and Former CEO of 777 Partners, Joshua Wander, Pleads Guilty⚖️ to $500 Million Fraud Scheme — DOJ Confirms Double‑Pledging, Misappropriation of Structured‑Settlement Funds, and Falsified Bank Statements
- The Steering Problem Needs a Wake‑Up Call
- Companies Still Using the Incorrect Term “Secondary Market Annuity”
- Canonical: Non‑Qualified Assignment (NQA)
- ⭐ THE 18–25 GUIDE TO STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS
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Category: IRC 104(a) Income Tax Exclusion Damages PI | Sickness | WorkComp
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Private Letter Rulings (PLRs) from the IRS offer important guidance on the tax treatment of structured settlements and related issues. They clarify the exclusion of periodic payments, assignment company liabilities, and compliance with IRC provisions. While tailored to individual taxpayers, PLRs collectively inform IRS interpretation and reinforce the reliability of structured settlement arrangements.
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The Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 2347), introduced on March 25, 2026, aims to exempt survivors of sexual assault from taxation on compensatory damages and settlements. It simplifies the process by removing the medical record requirement and aligns tax practices with IRS policy, ensuring dignity for survivors while reducing legal complications.
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The IRS has consistently held that compensatory damages, including lost wages, received on account of a personal physical injury are excludable from gross income with the exception of punitive damages. Rev. Rul. 85-97 and also see Commissioner v. Schleier, 515 U.S. 323, 329-30 (1995). says IRS.
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A number of liquidity seeking Allstate structured settlement annuitants were hosed by effectively paying higher than necessary discount rates on structured settlement factoring transactions than they might have, had they been notified by Allstate as had been the custom and practice prior to 2007.
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Life expectancy has been increasing for several reasons ,Improvements in heart disease and stroke mortality have had a big impact. That’s really what’s driving the trend for annuities.
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If your structured settlement, the ‘job you cannot be fired from” is keeping you above the median of the middle class, why would you sell it? Why would you jeopardize it, unless you really had no other alternative?
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Sellers need to be aware that a transactions that do not comply with federal or state statutes, may put the tax treatment on the table for discussion. The Federal legislation, effective in 2002, that established IRC 5891, is intended to protect payees who sell structured settlement payments.
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Compensation for pain and suffering resulting from the consensual performance of a service contract is not “damages” under I.R.C. section 104(a)(2) and must be included in gross income