• QuickRead Top Story - Valuation/Appraisal

    A Contrarian View to Discount for Lack of Control

    The “Least Bad” Method Determining a discount for lack of control (DLOC) is one of the more challenging tasks facing business valuators. The reason for this is the methodologies used each have weaknesses. In this article, David Goodman looks at two methods and explains the difficulties in relying on them. This is a case where business appraisers may need to rely on the “least bad” method … a term of art. Determining a discount for lack of control (DLOC) is one of the more challenging tasks facing business valuators. The reason for this is the methodologies used each have weaknesses.…

  • QuickRead Top Story - Valuation/Appraisal

    Book Review

    Best Practices: Thought Leadership in Valuation, Damages, and Transfer Price Analysis This fall, Robert F. Reilly and Robert P. Schweihs published Best Practices: Thought Leadership in Valuation, Damages, and Transfer Price Analysis. The book celebrates the 50th anniversary of Willamette Management Associates and is intended to present thought leadership. The topics selected for inclusion are topics that the authors felt did not already enjoy thought leadership discussion in the current literature. As the authors note: “we were not satisfied with the breadth or depth of the available literature in [many of the topics covered]. We usually concluded: Someone should write…

  • Case Law - QuickRead Featured

    Reasonably Certain Foreseeable Future Events and the Standard of Value

    In Berquist v. Commissioner, Judge Swift Finds a Company’s Pending Liquidation is Relevant and Foreseeable. The Tax Court valued closely-held stock in an anesthesiology practice donated to a hospital for charitable contribution purposes at its liquidation value since the anesthesiology practice would no longer exist after the physician-stockholders were consolidated into a newly-formed umbrella physician management company.  The donors valued the practice at $401.79 per share under the going concern premise of value.  The respondent determined a fair market value of $37.00 per share under the liquidation premise of value.  The Judge cited one key factor that determined his ruling. …

  • Case Law - QuickRead Archive

    Tax Court Rules: A Business Claims Value of $12M; The IRS Argues for $36M

    Estate of Natale B. Giustina v. Commissioner What happens when a case lands in the United States Tax Court where Form 706 found the fair market value of a business share at $12.6 million and the IRS estimates it’s worth $36 million? Find out, in Estate of Natale B. Giustina v. Commissioner! At issue was a 41 percent share in a closely held timber company. Meanwhile, in the Delaware Chancery Court, In re Answers Corp. Shareholders Litigation finds plaintiff shareholders arguing to enjoin the sale of the company because they believed it was of higher worth. The Court finds the…