The superintendent of financial services shall establish rules and procedures for determining which insurers, self-insurers, plans or arrangements are financially qualified to provide the security required under this article and to be designated as qualified insurers.
§ 5039.Duties of superintendent of financial services.
Article 50-A. Periodic Payment of Judgments in Medical and Dental Malpractice Actions · Last amended 2011 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 5039 directs the superintendent of financial services to establish the rules and procedures for determining which insurers and other arrangements are financially qualified to provide the annuity security Article 50-A requires.
Full Text of CPLR 5039
Plain-English Summary
Article 50-A's whole security framework depends on an insurer being solvent and reliable enough to fund decades of future payments, and CPLR 5039 assigns the gatekeeping role to a state regulator. The superintendent of financial services has to establish rules and procedures for determining which insurers, self-insurers, plans, or other arrangements are financially qualified to provide the security this article requires.
Once an insurer or arrangement meets those standards, it earns designation as a qualified insurer, the status CPLR 5032 requires before an annuity contract can satisfy the security obligation for a structured malpractice judgment. By centralizing that financial vetting with the superintendent rather than leaving it to case-by-case judicial fact-finding, the statute aims for consistent, expert-driven screening of the entities entrusted with a malpractice plaintiff's future payments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides which insurers can provide security for structured malpractice judgments in New York?
The superintendent of financial services establishes the rules and procedures for determining which insurers and other arrangements are financially qualified under CPLR 5039.
What does it mean for an insurer to be a qualified insurer under Article 50-A?
It means the superintendent of financial services has determined, under the standards set by CPLR 5039, that the insurer is financially qualified to provide the annuity security CPLR 5032 requires.
Can a self-insurer or other arrangement qualify to provide security under Article 50-A?
Yes. CPLR 5039 directs the superintendent to set standards covering insurers, self-insurers, plans, or other arrangements, not just traditional insurance companies.
Why does New York require state approval of the insurers backing malpractice annuities?
Centralizing the financial qualification process with the superintendent of financial services is meant to ensure consistent, expert screening of the entities responsible for decades of future payments to malpractice plaintiffs.
How does CPLR 5039 connect to the annuity security required by CPLR 5032?
CPLR 5032 requires the annuity behind a structured malpractice judgment to come from a qualified insurer, and CPLR 5039 is what defines and establishes that qualification standard.
Amendment History
Add, L 1985, ch 294, § 9, eff July 1, 1985; amd, L 2011, ch 62, § 104 (Part A), eff Oct 3, 2011.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: qualified insurer New York malpractice annuitysuperintendent of financial services structured judgmentwho approves annuity insurers New York malpractice