An assignment of or an agreement to assign any right to periodic installments for future damages contained in a judgment entered under this article is enforceable only as to amounts: (a) to secure payment of alimony, maintenance, or child support; (b) for the cost of products, services, or accommodations provided or to be provided by the assignee for medical, dental or other health care; or (c) for attorney’s fees and other expenses of litigation incurred in securing the judgment.
§ 5048.Assignment of periodic installments.
Article 50-B. Periodic Payment of Judgments in Personal Injury, Injury to Property and Wrongful Death Actions · Last amended 1986 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 5048 restricts assignment of future periodic-payment rights under Article 50-B to three purposes: support obligations like alimony or child support, medical and health care costs, and attorney's fees and litigation expenses tied to the judgment.
Full Text of CPLR 5048
Plain-English Summary
A stream of periodic payments is meant to replace future earnings and cover future medical needs over years or decades. Left unprotected, that stream could be sold off for a fraction of its value to a buyer more interested in the discount than the recipient's welfare. This section heads that off by narrowing when an assignment of periodic-payment rights is enforceable at all.
Only three purposes qualify: securing payment of alimony, maintenance, or child support; paying for products, services, or accommodations tied to medical, dental, or other health care; and covering attorney's fees and litigation expenses incurred in winning the judgment. An assignment, or an agreement to assign, outside those three categories doesn't hold up under this article.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an injured plaintiff sell future periodic payments to a factoring company in New York?
Only for the purposes CPLR 5048 lists — support obligations, medical or health care costs, and attorney's fees or litigation expenses. An assignment for any other purpose isn't enforceable under the article.
What purposes allow assignment of periodic judgment payments under CPLR 5048?
Three: securing alimony, maintenance, or child support; paying for medical, dental, or other health care products and services; and covering attorney's fees and litigation expenses in securing the judgment.
Why does New York restrict assignment of these payments?
To keep the payments serving the purpose the judgment set them up for — replacing lost earnings and covering future medical needs — rather than being sold off to third parties.
Is an assignment for a purpose other than those three enforceable?
No. Section 5048 makes an assignment or agreement to assign enforceable only as to the amounts falling within its three listed categories.
Does this section prevent a judgment creditor from ever assigning periodic payments?
No, it just limits enforceable assignments to the three purposes listed — support, health care costs, and litigation-related fees and expenses.
Amendment History
Add, L 1986, ch 682, § 9, eff July 30, 1986.
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: assignment of structured judgment paymentssell future periodic payments New Yorkstructured settlement factoring law50-B assignment restrictionsassign periodic installments judgment