2023 CODE OF GEORGIA › Title 51 - TORTS (§§ 51-1-1 — 51-16-5) › Chapter 12 - DAMAGES (§§ 51-12-1 — 51-12-80) › Article 4 - [GEORGIA STRUCTURED SETTLEMENT PROTECTION ACT] (§§ 51-12-71 — 51-12-80) › Section 51-12-74 - Prohibited activities; penalty for violation

(a)
A transferee or structured settlement purchase company, and an employee or representative of a transferee or structured settlement purchase company, shall not engage in any of the following actions:
(1)
Pursue or complete a transfer with a payee without complying with this article;
(2)
Refuse or fail to fund a transfer, following court approval of the transfer;
(3)
Acquire structured settlement payment rights from the payee without complying with this article and securing court approval of the transfer in accordance with this article;
(4)
Intentionally file a structured settlement transfer proceeding in any court other than the court specified in subsection (a) of Code Section
51-12-79
, unless the transferee is required to file in some other court by other applicable law;
(5)
Pay a commission or finder's fee to a person or entity for facilitating or arranging a structured settlement transfer with a payee, unless such person or entity is registered as a structured settlement purchase company or is an employee of a registered structured settlement purchase company. A structured settlement purchase company may pay to third parties routine transfer expenses, such as court filing fees, escrow fees, lien recordation fees, judgment and lien search fees, attorney fees, and other similar types of fees relating to a transfer. A structured settlement purchase company may pay a reasonable referral fee to an attorney, certified public accountant, actuary, licensed insurance agent, or other licensed professional advisor in connection with a transfer;
(6)
Intentionally advertise materially false or misleading information regarding its products or services;
(7)
Attempt to coerce, bribe, or intimidate any payee seeking to transfer structured settlement payment rights;
(8)
Attempt to defraud a payee or any party to a structured settlement transfer or any interested party in a structured settlement transfer proceeding by means of forgery or false identification;
(9)
Intervene in a pending structured settlement transfer proceeding, if the transferee or structured settlement purchase company is not a party to such proceeding or an interested party relative to the proposed transfer which is the subject of the pending structured settlement transfer proceeding. However, this shall not preclude a structured settlement purchase company from intervening in a pending structured settlement transfer proceeding where the payee has signed a transfer agreement with the structured settlement purchase company within 60 days prior to the filing of the pending structured settlement proceeding, and the structured settlement purchase company who filed the pending structured settlement transfer proceeding violated any of the provisions of this article in connection with the proposed transfer that is the subject of the pending structured settlement transfer proceeding;
(10)
Knowingly contact a payee who has signed a transfer agreement and is pursuing a proposed transfer with another structured settlement purchase company for the purpose of inducing the payee into canceling the proposed transfer or transfer agreement with the other structured settlement purchase company, if a structured settlement transfer proceeding has been filed by the other structured settlement purchase company and is pending. However, if no hearing has been held in the pending structured settlement transfer proceeding within 90 days of the filing of same, this paragraph shall not apply; or
(11)
Fail to dismiss a pending structured settlement transfer proceeding at the request of the payee. A dismissal of a structured settlement proceeding under this Code section shall not exempt a person who violates this Code section from any liability under this article.
(b)
A payee may pursue a private action as a result of a violation of this Code section, and may recover all damages and pursue all rights and remedies to which the payee may be entitled under this article, the Fair Business Practices Act, or other applicable law.
(c)
A structured settlement purchase company may pursue a private action to enforce paragraphs (4), (7), (9), (10), or (11) of subsection (a) of this Code section as a result of a violation of such paragraphs, and may recover all damages and pursue all remedies to which the structured settlement purchase company may be entitled under this article or other applicable law.
(d)
If a court determines that a structured settlement purchase company or transferee is in violation of this Code section, the court may revoke the registration of the structured settlement purchase company, suspend the registration of the structured settlement purchase company for a period of time to be determined at the discretion of the court, or enjoin the structured settlement purchase company or transferee from filing new structured settlement transfer proceedings or pursuing transfers in this state.
Added by 2021 Ga. Laws 275,§ 1, eff. 7/1/2021.