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.

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The STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS 4REAL® Blog is a highly regarded source for structured settlement news, information, and commentary, led by structured settlement and settlement planning subect mater expert John Darer CLU ChFC MSSC CeFT RSP CLTC. With two decades of operation, the blog and 4structures.com are recognized as comprehensive resources, offering detailed guides and specialized insights. Established in 2005, the blog caters to a broad audience, including legal professionals, injured individuals, families, and various stakeholders, providing reviews and opinions on settlement planning. John Darer, President of 4structures.com LLC, is a seasoned structured settlement expert with over 40 years of financial services experience and 31 years specializing in structured settlements. Based in Stamford, CT, he is a Certified Financial Transitionist and Registered Settlement Planner, holding insurance licenses in 45 states and the District of Columbia. John Darer is dedicated to transparency and advocacy, he emphasizes the importance of engaging trained and licensed professionals for settlement planning, offering valuable insights through his investigative journalism and professional commentary.

Category: richard halpern

  • Settlement Industry Pioneer Richard G.Halpern Dies (1945-2009)

    Settlement Industry Pioneer Richard G.Halpern Dies (1945-2009)

    Richard G. Halpern, a passionate and pioneering advocate for tort victims in the United States has passed away from cancer at age 64. Although I’ve known Rich Halpern for almost 20 years, I’ve only really got to know him well over the last three

  • “Go and Boil Your Bottom, You Son of A Silly Person!”

    “Go and Boil Your Bottom, You Son of A Silly Person!”

    Richard Halpern's email regarding the Patrick Hindert's "Structured Settlement Credo" 1-5 and "The Holy Grail" said: "John,   You have already called me and interviewed me after Patrick Hindert published his "Structured Settlement Credo – 3" wherein he misquoted and mischaracterized an article that I recently had published in the "North Carolina Lawyers Weekly".  In said blog…

  • Structured Settlements Industry 2009 | A Review of the Year’s Impactful Stories

    Credit to Mark Wahlstrom, Jan Schlictmann, Roger Bernstein, Peter Arnold. Bruce DeBacher, Matt Bracy and this author John Darer for their collective efforts to diffuse and undo any damage done when former Elian Gonzalez’ and U.S. attorney Kendall Coffey mislabeled structured settlements in a complaint against Rothstein which sparked a media mislabeling frenzy.

  • Richard G. Halpern Tribute

    "Today I lost a friend. Today I lost a mentor, a strategical thinker, a confidant and someone who shared a common philosophy for truly putting the injured party and their needs first and rest will work itself out later. I am fortunate that my life and his intersected, if only for a brief four years,…

  • Freedom of Screech

    The late Richard Halpern’s ribald response to Patrick Hundert’s run on blogging about Structured Settlement Credo