Florida Statute 24.1153
“Assignment of prizes payable in installments”
What it means
An installment lottery prize can be voluntarily assigned — usually sold to a buyout firm — only through an appropriate court order, from the circuit where the winner resides or where the department is headquartered. The judge must find the discount rate does not exceed Florida's usury limit and that the winner swore an affidavit: sound mind, no duress, independent legal counsel not paid by the buyer, and independent financial or tax advice.
The buyer's one-page disclosure must be in bold type of at least 14 points — payments, purchase price, discount rate, fees — with a 3-business-day right to cancel. The department gets 10 days' notice of the hearing; payments subject to child-support or state-debt offsets cannot be assigned.
- Assignment is valid only under a court order — venue is the winner's home circuit or the department's headquarters circuit.
- The discount rate on the purchase price may not exceed the state usury limit.
- The winner must swear to independent legal counsel (not paid by the assignee) and independent financial or tax advice.
- Disclosure must be bold, 14-point type or larger: payments, purchase price, discount rate, and fees.
- The winner keeps a 3-business-day right to cancel after signing.
- The department must receive at least 10 days' notice before the hearing; offset-encumbered payments cannot be assigned.
How it plays out
This is the statute standing between a cash-strapped family and a bad buyout. The court order is not a formality — the judge puts the discount rate on the record against the usury cap, and the independent-advice affidavit means the buyer's paperwork alone cannot close the deal. When an estate needs liquidity from a lottery annuity, a §24.1153 petition is the only lawful route, and we price it against simply administering the installments as they fall due — which is often the better answer.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 24.1153 does real work:
Questions people ask
