Up until now, all the corporate M&A talk for 2014 has surrounded the $45 billion deal Comcast has made for Time-Warner Cable. That’s not just because of the price tag. If approved by regulators, Comcast would end up as the internet gatekeeper for one out of every three homes and businesses in the country. That’s also a lot of power and control over internet access, quality and service for one third of t ...

Proposed rule amendments for small businesses and additional exemptions under Section 3(b) of the Securities Act On December 18, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission released their long-awaited proposed rules on Regulation A+. The amendments to Regulation A were proposed pursuant to Title IV of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012. The proposed rules are intended to increase access to the ...

Forensic professionals endure trench warfare Discovery provides a window of opportunity to gather evidence and develop expert reports. A trained forensics professional can ascertain whether cash deposits were all accounted for or secreted. It is advisable and well worth the time, trouble, and money to retain a forensic professional to conduct an analysis. ...

The Appraisal Standards Board (ASB) has released the Second Exposure Draft for proposed changes to the 2016-2017 Uniform Standards for Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). The scheduled revisions include: Defining the term “report” Edits to eliminate confusion regarding report drafts Revisions to Standard 3 to enhance consistency with other standards and clarify dates identified and reported Edits to el ...

Believe it or not, Hawaii’s top marginal tax rate is 367,100 percent. That makes France’s 75 percent and 100 percent tax rates seem like a downright bargain. A new paper released by the University of Hawaii at Hilo, Texas Tech University and The Institute for Business and Finance Research details how state tax laws in Hawaii create a tax cliff of epic proportions where a single extra dollar in income can tr ...

New changes to the law could mean new client service opportunities The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a No Action Letter that allows unlicensed professionals to receive commissions for the sale of privately held securities in a sales transaction. ...

Use of photography in forensic and valuation engagements The purpose of this article is to provide the CPA/expert a brief introduction to the use of photography in a valuation or forensic engagement. It is not intended to be an all-inclusive training manual in forensic photography. Criminal forensic photographic procedures may, due to the differences between civil and criminal law, be materially different. ...

After the media gaffe that disgraced LA Clippers owner, Donald Sterling, the mogul was fined $2.5 million by the NBA. There’s a misconception that he’s being required to sell the team as part of his lifetime ban from the sport, but that’s not actually true. NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, is asking the NBA Board of Governors to force Sterling to sell, which requires three quarters of the league’s owners to s ...

Four things valuators should know about medical claims and coding In this second installment of his review of medical claims coding, Mr. Moffatt sets forth his final two examples that explain the unique circumstances of the medical practice revenue cycle that affect cash flow and how they relate to the valuation of a medical practice. Part 1 of this article was published on March 4, 2014. ...

Good communication skills are essential for the expert Witness Expert witnesses and litigation support professionals generally do not consider the importance of communication skill training and practice as part of their preparation process. Communication is the third leg of expert witness preparation and separates the average witness from the great witness. ...

While mergers and acquisitions within the healthcare sector are expected to grow this year, the bulk of the deals will likely involve targets such as large, outpatient care centers and allied healthcare facilities, as opposed to large in-patient hospitals. This analysis comes as part of a white paper recently released by Ponder & Co. Also included were projections that nonprofit institutions will be the ...

Professor, Aswath Damodaran, of the NYU Stern School of Business has released his 2014 Data Page online. Updated annually and exhaustively researched, the data page offers in-depth information on 41,000 companies in 131 worldwide markets, including measures of operation, leverage, pricing, equity risk premiums and country risk. One of the major changes to this year’s data page was the switch from Value Line ...

A two-way street In this article, Britt Madden and Britt Madden, Jr. respond to Jim Hitchner’s July 2013 QuickRead article on “Rigging the Cost of Equity”. The authors contend that the rigging is more likely the result of a lack of understanding the current status of small business in the present economy, which has left it forever changed. ...

Suggestions for business valuation professionals thinking about retiring This article contains some tips from a long-time practitioner to business valuators who are reaching retirement age, but are not ready to retire and just play golf. ...

The International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR) recently released its second annual Survey of Inspection Findings for the year 2013. The report includes findings from IFIAR members’ (international audit regulators independent of the audit profession) inspections of audit firms, primarily those associated with the largest international audit firm networks. Findings from audit firm activities ...

Expert witness do's and don'ts In this article, Ted Blodgett offers 10 do's and don'ts to consider when serving as an expert witness. ...

(…and possibly their valuation consultant?) Rev. Proc. 2014-18 provides a simplified method for certain taxpayers to obtain an extension to elect portability under Code Sec. 2010(c)(5)(A). This method allows a widow or widower to apply a deceased spouses unused exclusion (DSUE) amount to the surviving spouse's subsequent transfers during life or at death. In these situations, the ability to file and use the ...

Comcast recently filed its public interest statement with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) explaining how the American public will benefit from its $45 billion planned merger with Time Warner Cable. Comcast claims the merger is necessary because it can’t compete with the likes of Google, Apple, Verizon and Netflix--companies with a national footprint. On the flipside, over 50 public interest grou ...

Forensic accounting examinations of not-for-profit entities The keys to performing a successful expert forensic accounting fraud engagement is to gain an understanding of the present internal control system, including policies [or lack thereof] in place to prevent fraud and abuse, as well as other key steps and procedures, as John J. DeLuca outlines in this article. ...

Management techniques from new China Sun Tzu, the ancient Chinese warlord, wrote the military treatise titled The Art of War. On a lighter note, similar 21st century business management techniques can be found in fortune cookies. ...