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    Building a State-of-the-Art M&A Target

    A firm can enrich its value to prospective suitors by investing in a top-notch IT infrastructure and exhibiting a willingness to embrace new technologies. To read the full article in Journal of Accountancy, click: Building a State-of-the-Art M&A Target.

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    Should Diversity be Part of Clients’ Portfolios?

    I consider myself a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. As an African-American, I have long been sensitive to issues like racial and gender equality. The last 12 months have been polarizing in America, from the #MeToo movement to tiki torch-bearing white nationalists to Black Lives Matter and the NFL national anthem protests. Our national melting pot is looking like anything but. To read the full article in Financial Planning, click: Should Diversity be Part of Clients’ Portfolios?

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    Amended Sec. 965 May Provide a Sec. 382 Benefit: Deemed Repatriation and RBIG

    The legislation known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), P.L. 115-97, imposes a “toll charge” on the mandatory deemed repatriation of certain deferred foreign earnings. As part of the transition to a territorial tax system, amended Sec. 965 uses the mechanics of the current Subpart F provisions to impose a one-time toll tax on the undistributed, non-previously taxed, post-1986 foreign earnings and profits (E&P) of certain U.S.-owned corporations. New Sec. 965(a) increases Subpart F income of a “deferred foreign income corporation” with positive earnings as of the measurement dates Nov. 2, 2017, or Dec. 31, 2017,…

  • QuickRead Top Story - Valuation/Appraisal

    The IRS Releases Two New Regulation Sections

    That You as a Business Valuer Need to Know About On August 8, 2018, the Service released proposed 199A regulations. Those regulations are important and mark a dramatic change from the prior tax regime. Another change that also marks a departure involves the release of final regulations for non-cash charitable deductions. In this article, the author discusses the latter.

  • Healthcare - QuickRead Top Story

    A Comprehensive Approach

    to Valuation of a Healthcare Practice or Entity A valuation consultant must understand the type of healthcare entity he or she is valuing, the opportunities and risks as discussed above, the potential buyers, the marketplace, and typical valuation multiples for specific types of deals. Extensive research into these areas will lead to a significantly better and more informed valuation. The author discusses the different buyers, motivations, and trends.

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    With SEC Vote, More Companies Qualify for Scaled Disclosure

    The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday voted to change the definition of “smaller reporting company” in an effort to expand the number of companies that qualify for scaled disclosure accommodations. To read the full article in Journal of Accountancy, click: With SEC Vote, More Companies Qualify for Scaled Disclosure.

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    Empowering the Human Element in Automation

    At Flint Hills Resources, robotic process automation is supercharging, not eliminating, finance professionals.  The Koch Industries subsidiary shows us how. To read the full article in Financial Management, click: Empowering the Human Element in Automation.

  • Litigation Consulting - QuickRead Top Story

    Discounting Lost Profits to Present Value

    Ex ante, Ex post, and Hybrid Methodologies January 2019 will be the twentieth anniversary of one of the seminal articles written on discounting lost profits, Peter Schulman’s Economic Damages: Discounting Concepts and Alternatives. This article addresses the concepts and complexities of discounting lost profits that were discussed in the Schulman article and advances and additional methodology for discounting lost profits.

  • Litigation Consulting - QuickRead Top Story

    The Expert Witness Exchange

    Marketplace Platform for Aspiring and Experienced Litigation Support Professionals There is no disputing the influence that expert witnesses have on litigation outcomes—this much we know for sure. Their expertise is often relied upon by the court in rendering decisions, weighing the opinions, methodology, and, indeed, the credibility of the competing expert witnesses involved for each party to the legal dispute. Considering what is at stake, it therefore behooves litigators to be exquisitely careful and circumspect in their expert witness retentions and due diligence practices. In this article, the authors discuss surprises that may arise and how those may affect the…

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    Draft 2019 Form W-4 and Instructions Posted

    The IRS issued a draft version of the 2019 Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, and instructions for the form, in an attempt to further simplify the task of determining income tax withholding for individual taxpayers after the passage of P.L. 115-97, known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). The TCJA eliminated personal exemptions, increased the standard deduction, increased the child tax credit, limited or discontinued certain deductions, and changed the tax rates and brackets. To read the full article in The Tax Advisor, click: Draft 2019 Form W-4 and Instructions Posted.

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    SEC Accuses Advisor of $5M Ponzi Scheme

    The SEC has charged an advisor and his wholly-owned RIA firm with operating a nearly $5-million Ponzi scheme that defrauded scores of investors over almost a decade, according to the regulator’s complaint filed in federal court. To read the full article in Financial Planning, click: SEC Accuses Advisor of $5M Ponzi Scheme.

  • Healthcare - QuickRead Top Story

    The Due Diligence Imperative

    Technology This article provides a peek at one of the six-part healthcare installments and provides an overview of the due diligence imperative for valuation professionals, in the context of the Four Pillars of Healthcare Value, i.e., Reimbursement, Regulatory, Technology, and Competition. The second, third, and fourth installments, already published, reviewed the due diligence process related to the reimbursement, regulatory, and competitive environments, respectively. This fifth installment reviews the due diligence process as it relates to technology in the healthcare industry. For more detailed information, see the July/August issue of The Value Examiner.

  • Litigation Consulting - QuickRead Top Story

    The Financial Expert

    Often the Link Between Damages and Causation Even with established liability, a plaintiff seeking damages must be able to calculate damages with reasonable certainty and demonstrate a causal link between the defendant’s acts and the plaintiff’s injury. The concept of causation is simple—did a defendant’s wrongful act cause the plaintiff’s damages? Proving causation, however, is not always as simple. Many times, damage experts simply assume causation. However, courts sometimes reject a finding on causation, and therefore the resulting damages, when an expert fails to consider alternative factors that could have caused or contributed to the plaintiff’s damages. Accordingly, a damage…

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    OECD Publishes 77 Comments on Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Intra-Group Services, Dispute Resolution

    Writing on behalf of BIAC, Will Morris said that many MNEs that have centralized intra-group services centers expend significant sums supporting audits for intra-group payments. He said the goal for this project should be to create clear, simplified, rules and safe harbors, where possible. Existing guidance should be clarified, not expanded, he said. To read the full article in MNE Tax, click: OECD Publishes 77 Comments on Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Intra-Group Services, Dispute Resolution.

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    FP&A Meets Artificial Intelligence

    One purpose of artificial intelligence (AI) is to capture, manage, and analyze amounts of data too large for less advanced technology to handle, and to produce insights faster and more accurately than people can. While AI promises to help businesses prepare better for potential opportunities and risks, the technology presents a challenge for management accountants in financial planning and analysis (FP&A). To read the full article in Financial Management, click: FP&A Meets Artificial Intelligence.

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    Add Value to Audits with Client-Focused Analytics

    Accounting services are rapidly becoming commoditized, and when clients don’t perceive a clear difference between service providers, they may choose the least expensive option. This is especially true for audit services, where clients—as well as auditors themselves—may see little difference between the work of competing firms. To read the full article in Journal of Accountancy, click: Add Value to Audits with Client-Focused Analytics.