Patent ID: 7734484

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, from a remote device, information about a settlement contract that is available for sale, in which the settlement contract is based on a life insurance policy of a policyholder; storing, using a processor, the information about the received settlement contract into a plurality of fields in a database, in which the processor and the remote device are in communication over a network and the database comprises information about a plurality of other settlement contracts; generating, using the processor, an index for the plurality of fields, in which the index is used for processing queries; receiving, from the remote device, a query that is based on at least one field; retrieving, using the processor, a first settlement contract that comprises information matching the at least one queried field; communicating to a plurality of potential purchasers, via the processor, that the first settlement contract is available for purchase; receiving, during a pre-determined period of time, at the processor a plurality of bids for the first settlement contract, in which each of the plurality of bids comprises a bid price; determining, using the processor, that a first bid price submitted by a first bidder is higher than any other bid prices that were received during the pre-determined period of time; transmitting, using the processor, an indication that an agreement to sell the first settlement contract at the first bid price has been made; and providing, using the processor, the policyholder of the first settlement contract with an opportunity to rescind the agreement.