South Carolina § 15-50-110 - Registration applications; bond.

§ 15-50-110. Registration applications; bond.

(A) Each initial or renewal application must contain a sworn certification by an owner, officer, director, or manager of the applicant, if the applicant is not a natural person, or by the applicant, if the applicant is a natural person, certifying that:

(1) the applicant has secured a surety bond payable to the State or has posted a cash bond in the amount of fifty thousand dollars. The bond must be in a form satisfactory to the Secretary and must run to the State for the benefit of any payee claimant to secure the faithful performance of the obligation of the structured settlement purchase company under the law; and

(2) the applicant must comply with this chapter when acting as a structured settlement purchase company and filing structured settlement transfer proceedings.

(B) The surety bond or cash bond is payable to the State of South Carolina.

(C) The surety bond or cash bond is effective concurrently with the applicant's registration with the Secretary and remains in effect for not less than three years after expiration or termination of that registration. The bond must be renewed each year when the registration of the applicant is renewed.

(D) The applicant must submit to the Secretary a copy of the surety bond or cash bond with its initial or renewal application.

(E) The surety bond or cash bond is intended to ensure that the structured settlement purchase company will comply with the provisions of this chapter relative to the payee and perform its obligations to the payee under this chapter, and to provide a source for recovery for the payee should a payee recover a judgment against a structured settlement purchase company for a violation of this chapter.

(F) An applicant must remit to the Secretary a fee of one thousand two hundred and fifty dollars for an initial registration and two hundred dollars for a renewed registration. This fee must be retained by the Secretary to offset the costs of processing and maintaining the registration of structured settlement purchase companies required by the chapter.

HISTORY: 2023 Act No. 22 (S.259), SECTION 11, eff January 1, 2024.

Editor's Note

2023 Act No. 22, SECTION 20, provides as follows:

"SECTION 20. SECTION 9 through SECTION 16 take effect on January 1, 2024. All other SECTIONS take effect on July 1, 2023, and apply to applications filed on or after the effective date."