A decision by the New York Court of Appeals on Tuesday makes third-party insurers not responsible for the long-term best interest of the holder of a structured settlement who wants to sell.

In Cordero v. Transamerica Annuity Service, the appellant, a former New Yorker, won a nearly seven-figure structured settlement for childhood lead poisoning, but then sold it to a procession of factoring companies for less than a third of its worth.