The Florida Senate

626.9911  Definitions.--As used in this act, the term:

(1)  "Department" means the Department of Insurance.

(2)  "Independent third-party trustee or escrow agent" means an attorney, certified public accountant, financial institution, or other person providing escrow services under the authority of a regulatory body. The term does not include any person associated, affiliated, or under common control with a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker.

(3)  "Person" has the meaning specified in s. 1.01.

(4)  "Viatical settlement broker" means a person who, for valuable consideration, offers or attempts to negotiate viatical settlement contracts between a viator resident in this state and one or more viatical settlement providers. The term does not include an attorney, accountant, financial planner, or person acting under a power of attorney from the viator, who is retained to represent the viator and whose compensation is paid solely by the viator without regard to whether a viatical settlement contract is effected.

(5)  "Viatical settlement contract" means a written settlement entered into between a viatical settlement provider, or its related provider trust, and a viator. The agreement must establish the terms under which the viatical settlement provider will pay compensation or anything of value.

(6)  "Viatical settlement provider" means a person who, in this state or from this state, enters into a viatical settlement contract with a viator. The term does not include:

(a)  Any bank, savings bank, savings and loan association, credit union, or other licensed lending institution that takes an assignment of a life insurance policy as collateral for a loan;

(b)  A life and health insurer that has lawfully issued a life insurance policy that provides accelerated benefits to terminally ill policyholders or certificateholders; or

(c)  Any natural person who enters into no more than one viatical settlement contract with a viator in 1 calendar year, unless such natural person has previously been licensed under this act or is currently licensed under this act.

(d)  A trust that meets the definition of a "related provider trust."

(7)  "Viator" means a natural person who has a catastrophic or life-threatening illness or condition and who has the right to assign, transfer, sell, devise, or bequeath the benefits of his or her life insurance policy.

(8)  "Related provider trust" means a trust established by a viatical settlement provider for the sole purpose of entering into or owning viatical settlement contracts. A related provider trust shall be subject to all provisions of this act that apply to the viatical settlement provider who established the related provider trust, except s. 626.9912, which shall not be applicable. A viatical settlement provider may establish no more than one related provider trust, and the sole trustee of such related provider trust shall be the viatical settlement provider licensed under s. 626.9912. The name of the licensed viatical settlement provider shall be included within the name of the related provider trust.

History.--s. 2, ch. 96-336; s. 22, ch. 97-93; s. 1, ch. 98-164.