Recognizing Hindsight and Projection Bias How can one expert opine that the company is insolvent and another expert—viewing the same financial statement—opine that the company is solvent? In this article, Michael Vitti answers this question and provides an overview of what is considered a preference and a fraudulent transfer. ...

So, You Want to Become a Venture Capitalist? In this article, Edward Mofrad shares his views on what it takes to become a successful venture capitalist. ...

  The IRS has released the annual inflation adjustments for a number of provisions for tax year 2015, including tax rate schedules, tax tables, and cost of living adjustments for some items. In total, the IRS posted more than 40 updates. You can read them in full here. You can also find an excellent overview of all the changes at Forbes.com through the link below. ...

  With just six more weeks to go until 2015 is rung in, small business owners and managers can take simple steps now to minimize their tax bill next April, according to business advisory services firm Skoda Minotti. Below are five ideas small business owners and managers can consider from now until December 31: Make those needed office or plant repairs. For the most part, expenses for minor business pr ...

In Chapter 11 Bankruptcies, Part 2 Financial experts may be called on to provide a number of services in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases. Common among these services is the analysis of the interest rate to be paid on secured claims, the valuing of the bankrupt business or a portion of the bankrupt estate, and the creation or analysis of cash flow projections to assist in determining the feasibility of the reorg ...

Insights from the Analysis of Mega Transactions By scrutinizing data from large transactions, valuation experts can glean important information and insights into current healthcare valuations. In this article, Collin McDermott and Bridget Triepke summarize SEC filings, review the implied valuation of large healthcare mergers—based on the purchase price—and provide a detailed review of the fairness opinions ...

According to the Global State of Information Security Survey 2015 sponsored by PwC, the total number of reported cyber security breaches reported this year jumped 48 percent totaling 42.8 million new occurrences. That’s equivalent to 117,339 successful security attacks happenings per day. In addition, the compounded annual growth rate of detected security breaches has increased by 66 percent every year sinc ...

In Chapter 11 Bankruptcies, Part 1 of 2 Financial experts may be called on to provide a number of services in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases. Common among these services is the analysis of the interest rate to be paid on secured claims, the valuing of the bankrupt business or a portion of the bankrupt estate, and the creation or analysis of cash flow projections to assist in determining the feasibility of the ...

Never Mutually Exclusive Strategy has many meanings. Implementing a strategy that adds shareholder value and factors in changing market dynamics is the best strategy. In this article, Carl Sheeler shares his views on “trusted advisors” and how these trusted advisors often do not have the depth or experience to assist clients in devising a strategy that will increase shareholder value. The article suggests t ...

  During preparation as an expert witness for trial, it’s crucial to anticipate the potential strategy and line of questioning of the opposing counsel. Many expert witnesses role-play the scenario in advance with a colleague standing in for the attorney to uncover hidden weaknesses in their preparation and to quell nerves. While years of acting as an expert witness can leave one feeling like they’ve se ...

  At the close of August 2014, $1.1 trillion passed through American hands in M&A deals, while the global tally was $2.4 trillion. Those totals mark the highest year-to-date volume since 2007. While that’s great for the industry, not all these deals ended happily. When anticipated value doesn’t materialize after the deal is done, disputes can arise, usually involving future payouts related to perfo ...

Best Practices for Estimating DLOMs In this article, Shannon Pratt suggests that practitioners are not using effectively the DLOM databases and defending the DLOM. Dr. Pratt presents a methodology that he argues is more defensible and comprehensive. ...

Private companies are subject to several frameworks for financial reporting purposes. In this article, Mark Zyla explains the role of the Private Company Council (PCC) and provides a summary of several recommendations the PCC has made to the FASB regarding accounting for goodwill and business combinations. ...

  In the last several years, at least within Internet circles, everyone has been talking about the cloud. Ask ten different people and you’ll get ten different answers, but the truth is, no one really knows what or where the cloud is. That’s okay. Lack of concrete definitions and clarity never stopped government from taxing something or in this case nothing. As best can be explained, the cloud is an In ...

According to Accounting Today, performance for private companies increased for the third straight quarter. Based on a report by Sageworks, sales for private companies grew an average of 8.6 percent in the past year, yielding an increase in net profit margins of nearly 7 percent. Among the industries seeing the highest increases were law firms and medical practices. The report also identified the 10 industri ...

Fifth Circuit Reverses the U.S. Tax Court and Upholds the Fractional-Ownership Discount The Fifth Circuit reversed the U.S. Tax Court recognizing the fractional-ownership discount advanced by the Estate of Elkins and awarding the Elkins family a $14.4 million estate tax refund. Joseph Brophy explores the recent ruling. ...

Tips for Selecting a Mediator Mediation provides an alternate means of resolving disputes. But how effective is mediation? Who should use mediation? In this article, Nancy Neal Yeend answers these questions and offers key points to consider when selecting a mediator. ...

  With all it does to prevent fraudulent tax returns, the IRS still paid out $5.2 billion in identity theft refunds in 2013. As if that wasn’t a big enough headache, imagine all the bureaucratic backtracking tens of millions of Americans who had their identity and cash stolen had to go through. Actually, that sum is just an estimate because the General Accounting Office (GAO) says that it’s impossible ...

A Principle-Based Model Revenue Recognition Wiley author Joanne Flood looks at how the converged revenue standard affects companies reporting under U.S. GAAP. ...

Key Issues For all of Mr. Koons’ careful estate planning, involving a significant sale and redemption transaction of business operations to provide liquidity and flexibility in his later years, the planning was disrupted by an untimely death—Mr. Koons’. The disruption here highlights the importance of starting early with business valuation input to help avoid a complex confluence of strategic transactions w ...