Connecticut Appellate Court Affirms Trial Court’s Decision Not to Tax-Affect Earnings In a dispute over the buyout of the minority shares in a family business, the Connecticut appellate court addressed several important valuation issues. Notably, the appellate court upheld the trial court’s decision not to tax-affect the company’s earnings in determining the fair value of the shares, even though both the plaintiffs’ and defendants’ experts had done so. The appellate court also upheld the trial court’s findings that (1) the company engaged in shareholder oppression and, therefore, the value of the minority shareholder’s interest would not be subject to a…
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A Discussion of Rover Pipeline, LLC v. 10.55 Acres of Land, More or Less, in Ashland County, Ohio, et al. “In God we trust. All others must bring data.” This famous saying has been attributed to various people, but it implies that when data is presented, the conclusion can be trusted. However, the Ohio District Court’s decision in Rover Pipeline, LLC v. 10.55 Acres of Land, More or Less, in Ashland County, Ohio, et al., demonstrates that data is only trustworthy if it is understood and applied correctly. The case, in which the expert’s valuation report was discarded due in…
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Beyond Keyword Placement—An Illustration for Search Engines to Find You In previous QuickRead articles, the author discussed the role blogging can play when marketing a firm’s services. When relevant articles are written and posted on a website, those articles can be found by prospects who are looking to solve a business challenge. But to ensure that blog posts are discovered, one needs to optimize them by adding keywords that prospects are searching for on search engines like Google. This process is discussed here. In previous articles, we discussed the role blogging can play when marketing your firm’s services. When relevant…
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Or, Why Aren’t You Hosting Your Own Content? (Part I of III) Many of us create content for, and market on, social media platforms—like LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. The questions are: Is this a dangerous practice? And if so, what should we be doing instead? Many of us create content for, and market on, social media platforms, like: LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. The questions are: Is this a dangerous practice? And if so, what should we be doing instead? What is Digital Sharecropping? Originally, the term “sharecropping” referred to a farming practice that became common after the Civil…
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on Corporate Income Taxes What corporate tax rate should valuation practitioners use going forward given the current environment? Despite corporate rates being “permanent”, is that so?! How should practitioners handle temporary differences? How do we decode a financial statement? In this article, the author shares his thoughts on how valuation professionals should approach a valuation engagement in this uncertain tax environment.
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In Nine Easy Steps You have probably heard how helpful it can be to write blogs, either for yourself or your valuation and accounting firm. If you have never written one, the challenge can seem daunting. But you probably will find it easier than you think—especially if you follow these steps. The article outlines the steps; these are based on a How-To Guide from Hinge University, their online learning platform.
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and an Expert Witness While there are hundreds of Daubert decisions issued every week, only a few go a long way in shaping the way experts are screened by judges in the future. And even fewer times, a multimillion-dollar verdict is hinged solely on the expert witness testimony! In this article, the author discusses the district and appellate court decision in Alaska Rent-A-Car v. Avis Budget Group.
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December 2018—U.S. Tax Court on Qualified Appraisals and Gill v. Gill, Minnesota’s Supreme Court Rules on the Status of Earn-Outs in Dissolution Cases The U.S. Tax Court issued two valuation memorandums in September and October 2018. Each memorandum serves as a reminder of the importance of attaching a qualified appraisal. The issue in Presley v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2018-171 (October 15, 2018) was whether petitioners were entitled to charitable deductions claimed in 2010 relating to land improvements paid before 2010 that benefitted a religious charity. We cite pertinent portions of this decision since it involves tax planning and the importance of…
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NACVA Member Survey Findings on Employee Recruitment and Retention Hinge Marketing recently completed a NACVA member survey. In this survey, Dr. Frederiksen learned that NACVA members sought to improve recruiting and retention in their firms. These were the two highest. In addition, gathering insights about how firms approach these challenges, we also asked employee-candidates how they search for and evaluate potential career opportunities. In this article, Dr. Frederiksen provides seven branding tips for aspiring experts.
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The Value of a Business is Not Always What it Seems (Part II of II) Personal goodwill is taxed at the individual capital gains tax rate, not the higher corporate income tax rate. Therefore, a credible personal goodwill calculation can amount to significant tax savings. One that is not adequately defensible invites risk of an audit. Every personal goodwill calculation is unique to each business, and the management interview is crucial. In this second part of the article, the author discusses issues that arise valuing identifiable intangible assets if goodwill is derived by first valuing personal goodwill, questions to ask…
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The Value of a Business is Not Always What it Seems (Part I of II) Personal goodwill is taxed at the individual capital gains tax rate, not the higher corporate income tax rate. Therefore, a credible personal goodwill calculation can amount to significant tax savings. One that is not adequately defensible invites risk of an audit. Every personal goodwill calculation is unique to each business, and the management interview is crucial. In this first of a two-part article, the author discusses when goodwill may need to be calculated and answers whether goodwill is only present if a key employee is…
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Physician On-Call Services This article focuses on physician on-call services and issues that valuation professionals must anticipate and consider in such an engagement. The article is a distillation of an in-depth article published in The Value Examiner July/August 2017 issue. In that issue, the authors also discuss classification and valuation of compensation for physician services and valuation of medical director compensation arrangements.
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and its Application to Enterprise Valuation The value of a firm must equal the value of the claims on its assets. In practice, this is generally expressed as the value FIRM = value DEBT + value EQUITY. Similarly, in a balance sheet prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), assets = liabilities and equity. By comparison, an economic balance sheet is constructed using market values rather than amounts reported in accordance with GAAP, items included are classified as operating, non-operating, debt or equity-related rather than current or long-term, asset or liability, and it includes economic assets and liabilities…
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Why Attorneys Tend to Overvalue Their Cases and What to Do! Research indicates that most lawyers over value their cases, and what is even more fascinating, it does not matter how long the attorney has been in practice! There are a number of reasons over valuation occurs; sometimes the answer is just that the attorney did not spend enough time reviewing the case, or failed to consider getting a second opinion. Then there are significant psychological factors that influence case valuation: anchoring, confirmation bias, and just plain old over confidence. The good news is there are some very simple steps…
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Adherence to Development and Reporting Standards in Family Law Litigation Family law practitioners deal with a host of complexities when resolving matrimonial disputes. In high net worth cases, financial considerations soon become paramount. Often the largest financial asset on the marital balance sheet is an interest in a closely held business controlled and operated by the family or single spouse. In these cases, a significant portion of the marital estate and, accordingly, the key to a party’s financial future rests on the results of a proper valuation. This article discusses the importance of development and reporting standards in litigation engagements.
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Authored by: James R. Hitchner; R. James Alerding; Joshua B. Angell; and Katherine E. Morris The author provides a review of Discount for Lack of Marketability Guide and Toolkit, authored by James Hitchner; R. James Alerding; Joshua B. Angell; and Katherine E. Morris.
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A Decision that Illustrates the Importance of Appraiser Independence To successfully work in the field of business valuation, appraisers must perform assignments with impartiality, objectivity, and independence, and without consideration of personal interests or the interests of those who hired them. Should such bias be found, the appraisal could be considered worthless and the expert’s reputation damaged, with even worse ramifications for the client. A recent Tax Court case illustrates this point.
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Creating Visibility and Personal Brand Recognition In this article, Dr. Frederiksen provides seven branding tips for aspiring experts.
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and other Court Cases for Valuation and Litigation Support Professionals Valuation practitioners may want to spend a few hours reading a recent U.S. Tax Court case where the valuation of intangible assets was squarely addressed. This QuickRead article highlights the facts and three issues addressed in the decision.
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Greater Disruption and Change Awaits the Financial Services Industry FinTech, or financial technology, has disrupted the financing industry. The FinTech revolution has not only changed the financial services industry, but it has also changed specific sectors, including: retail banking, lending and financing, payments and transfers, wealth and asset management, markets and exchanges, insurance, and blockchain transactions, just to name a few. It will continue to be vital for those who work in such sectors to learn how the FinTech revolution affects them immediately, as well as their future careers and business dealings. This article traces and history and shares the…