Selling a structured settlement in New York City requires court approval under New York General Obligations Law §5-1701 through §5-1709. NYC structured settlements arising from the state's unique Scaffold Law, high jury awards, and large MTA and municipal liability cases are often among the largest in the country. Catalina Structured Funding serves structured settlement recipients throughout all five boroughs with competitive rates, four attorneys on staff experienced with NY law, and a process that typically takes 30–60 days.
New York's Structured Settlement Protection Act
New York General Obligations Law §5-1701 through §5-1709 governs all structured settlement transfers in the state. The law requires:
- A written disclosure statement provided to the seller at least 10 days before signing the transfer agreement
- A 3-day right of rescission after the agreement is signed
- Court approval by the NY Supreme Court in the seller's county of residence
- Written notice to all interested parties (the annuity issuer, insurance company, and any other parties named in the original settlement)
- A judicial finding that the transfer is in the seller's best interest, taking into account the welfare of any dependents
CSF's attorney team prepares every New York transfer application to meet all statutory requirements from the outset. This minimizes the risk of court delays that can occur when buyers submit incomplete or improperly prepared petitions.
NYC Borough Supreme Court Locations
Structured settlement transfer petitions are filed with the New York Supreme Court in the county where the seller resides. Here are the five borough court locations:
- Manhattan (New York County): NY Supreme Court, 60 Centre St., New York, NY 10007
- Brooklyn (Kings County): NY Supreme Court, 360 Adams St., Brooklyn, NY 11201
- Queens (Queens County): NY Supreme Court, 88-11 Sutphin Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11435
- Bronx (Bronx County): NY Supreme Court, 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451
- Staten Island (Richmond County): NY Supreme Court, 18 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY 10301
CSF files applications and manages court scheduling in all five borough courts. Sellers do not need to attend the court hearing in most cases. CSF's attorneys appear on your behalf.
The Process: From Quote to Funded
CSF's NYC structured settlement transfer process follows these steps:
- Free, no-obligation quote. Contact CSF with your payment schedule. We review the terms and present a written offer within 24–48 hours.
- 10-day disclosure period. New York law requires a mandatory 10-day waiting period after you receive the disclosure statement before you can sign the transfer agreement.
- Sign the transfer agreement. Review the terms, ask any questions, and sign when ready.
- 3-day rescission window. You have three days to rescind your agreement without penalty.
- Court application filed. CSF prepares and files the complete petition with the appropriate NY Supreme Court within two weeks of signing.
- Court hearing and approval. A judge reviews the petition and makes a best-interest determination. Scheduling in NYC courts typically takes 3–6 weeks after filing.
- Funded. Payment is released within days of the court's signed order.
Why NYC Structured Settlements Are Often Large
New York City produces some of the highest-value personal injury and liability settlements in the country, for several reasons:
- New York Scaffold Law (Labor Law §240): New York imposes strict liability on contractors and property owners for gravity-related construction accidents. Unlike other states where comparative negligence reduces awards, New York's Scaffold Law means injured construction workers can recover the full value of their damages regardless of any contributory negligence. This produces very large structured settlements for construction injury cases.
- High jury verdicts: New York City juries historically award significantly higher damages than national averages, particularly for pain and suffering. This drives larger settlement values to avoid trial risk.
- MTA and municipal liability: New York City's mass transit system, city agencies, and public infrastructure are frequent defendants. Large settlements arising from MTA accidents, NYPD misconduct, and city agency liability are common.
- Medical malpractice: NYC's major hospital systems (Mount Sinai, NYU Langone, NewYork-Presbyterian, Bellevue) generate significant medical malpractice litigation. Serious injury cases often settle for seven figures or more.
Partial Sales: You Don't Have to Sell Everything
Many NYC residents contact CSF because they need a specific amount for a specific purpose (a down payment on a co-op, business capital, medical bills) but want to keep some of their future income stream. CSF routinely structures partial transactions, where you sell a portion of your payments while retaining the rest.
Options include:
- Selling a fixed number of future payments while keeping everything after that
- Selling a percentage of each payment (e.g., selling half of each monthly payment)
- Selling a future lump-sum payment while keeping all periodic income
Each partial transaction requires the same court approval process, but there is no additional cost or complexity for choosing a partial over a full sale.
For more information, see our New York structured settlement guide or our complete guide to selling structured settlements.