§ 28A–102. Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter, the term:

(1) "Annuity issuer" means an insurer that has issued an insurance contract used to fund periodic payments under a structured settlement.

(2) "Assignee" means a party acquiring or proposing to acquire structured settlement payment rights directly or indirectly from a transferee.

(3) "Dependents" means a payee's spouse and minor children and all other persons for whom the payee is legally obligated to provide support, including alimony.

(4) "Discounted present value" means the present value of future payments, as determined by discounting such payments to the present using the most recently published applicable federal rate for determinina the present value of an annuity, as published by the United States Internal Revenue Service.

(5) "Gross advance amount" means the sum payable to the payee or for the payee's account as consideration for a transfer of structured settlement payment rights before any reductions for transfer expenses or other deductions to be made from such consideration.

(6) "Independent professional advice" means the advice of an attorney, certified public accountant, financial planner, actuary, or other appropriately qualified and licensed professional advisor:

(A) Who is engaged by a payee to render advice concerning the implications of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights;

(B) Who is not in any manner affiliated with or compensated by the transferee; and

(C) Whose compensation for rendering such advice is not affected by whether such a transfer occurs.

(7) "Interested parties" means, with respect to any structured settlement, the payee, any beneficiary irrevocably designated under the annuity contract to receive payments following the payee's death, the annuity issuer, the structured settlement obligor, a parent or other guardian or authorized legal representative of any interested party who is not legally competent, and any other party that has continuing rights or obligations under such structured settlement.

(8) "Net advance amount" means the gross advance amount less the aggregate amount of the actual and estimated transfer expenses required to be disclosed under § 28A-103(5).

(9) "Payee" means an individual who receives tax-free payments under a structured settlement and proposes to make a transfer of structured settlement payment rights thereunder.

(10) "Periodic payments" means both recurring payments and scheduled future lump-sum payments under a structured settlement.

(11) "Qualified assignment agreement" means an agreement providing for a qualified assignment, as that term is defined in section 130(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, approved January 14, 1983 (96 Stat. 2605; 26 U.S.C. § 130).

(12) "Structured settlement" means an arrangement for periodic payment of damages for personal injury or sickness established by a settlement or judgment in resolution of a tort claim.

(13) "Structured settlement agreement" means an agreement, judgment, stipulation, or release embodying the terms of a structured settlement.

(14) "Structured settlement obligor" means the party that has the continuing periodic payment obligation to the payee under a structured settlement agreement or a qualified assignment agreement.

(15) "Structured settlement payment rights" means the rights to receive periodic payments, including lump-sum payments, under a structured settlement, whether from the structured settlement obligor or the annuity issuer, where:

(A) The payee is domiciled in the District; or

(B) The structured settlement agreement was approved by a court in the District.

(16) "Terms of the structured settlement" include, with respect to any structured settlement, the terms of the structured settlement agreement, the annuity contract, any qualified assignment agreement, and any order or other approval of a court or other government authority that authorized or approved such structured settlement.

(17) "Transfer" means any sale, assignment, pledge, hypothecation, or other alienation or encumbrance of structured settlement payment rights made by a payee for consideration; provided, that the term "transfer" shall not include the creation or perfection of a security interest in structured settlement payment rights under a blanket security agreement entered into with an insured depository institution, in the absence of any action to redirect the structured settlement payments to such insured depository institution, or an agent or successor in interest thereof, or otherwise to enforce such blanket security interest against the structured settlement payment rights.

(18) "Transfer agreement" means the agreement providing for the transfer of structured settlement payment rights from a payee to a transferee.

(19) "Transfer expenses" means all expenses of a transfer that are required under the transfer agreement to be paid by the payee or deducted from the gross advance amount, including court filing fees, attorney's fees, escrow fees, lien recordation fees, judgment and lien search fees, finders' fees, commissions, and other payments to a broker or other intermediary; provided, that the term "transfer expenses" shall not include preexisting obligations of the payee payable for the payee's account from the proceeds of a transfer.

(20) "Transferee" means a party acquiring or proposing to acquire structured settlement payment rights through a transfer.