What Is a Structured Settlement and How Does It Work?

In 2018, there were 277,010 civil lawsuits filed in the U.S.

Many of these cases probably resulted in the plaintiff winning and receiving compensation for their cases.

One of the ways that plaintiffs receive compensation from civil cases is through structured settlements.

If you are going through a civil case and expect to win, you might be wondering, “what is a structured settlement?” A structured settlement is a way you can receive compensation from a lawsuit over time.

Here are several things you should understand about structured settlements if you expect to get one, or are trying to decide if you should choose one for your compensation.

What Is a Structured Settlement?

A structured settlement is another term for an annuity, in a sense. An annuity is a type of payment system where you have a lump-sum of cash in an account. You cannot access this account, though.

Instead, the institution that holds the annuity provides you with a stream of payments from this money until it’s gone.

A structured settlement allows you to receive your lawsuit settlement gradually and for a specific amount of time instead of getting it all at once.

When you get a structured settlement, you may have choices with how your payment structure works.

For example, you might be able to choose how many years the payments last. You might also be able to choose how often you receive payments. You may even be able to defer the payments for a set timeframe.

When you’re in a civil lawsuit, your lawyer will assist you with setting up your structured settlement, if this is what you receive.

You Might Have a Choice Between a Lump-Sum Payment and a Structured Settlement

You might even have the choice between receiving your settlement as a lump-sum payment or through a structured settlement. If you have this choice, make sure you evaluate and compare these options before choosing.

Many people choose structured settlements because it makes budgeting a lot easier for them. Other people choose them to avoid having access to a large sum of money at one time.

Some people choose a structured settlement because it offers more money in all compared to the amount they would receive from an upfront lump-sum payment.

You Can Always Sell Your Structured Settlement

The good news about structured settlements is that you don’t have to keep them for their lifespan. If you ever decide that you no longer want to spread out your compensation over time, you could sell your settlement for cash.

To sell structured settlement, you will need to locate a buyer. The buyer will offer you cash for your structured settlement, and you can accept or reject the offer.

Learn More About How These Work

If you still have questions about what is a structured settlement, start researching this subject.

You can learn a lot by researching structured settlements, and you can also learn more about these by checking out the rest of our website.