• Case Law - QuickRead Top Story

    Legal Update: December 2025

    January 28, 2026

    In re Harnack: Don’t Ignore Discovery and the Court’s Orders In re Harnack, 2025 IL App (1st) 240835, 2025 Ill. App. Unpub. LEXIS 1094, 2025 LX 124170 (Ill. App. June 24, 2025) serves as an admonition to litigants that are obstinate and refuse to follow the court’s order. Frequently, this happens in connection with discovery and paying judgments. This case serves as a reminder that there is a cost to failure to comply and follow a court’s order. Dr. Joyce Brothers, perhaps the first psychologist to gain fame through television, once said, “My husband and I have never considered divorce.…

  • Case Law - QuickRead Top Story

    Legal Update: Kwak v. Bozarth

    November 15, 2023

    The Perils of a Party Doing their Own Business Valuation in a Dissolution Action Kwak v. Bozarth is an unpublished Massachusetts case. The trial court made several decisions based on unavailable data. The case illustrates the perils of a party in a martial dissolution acting as their own expert and underscores the importance of how the standard of review affects an appellate panel’s review of the trial court decision. Valuation professionals often say that valuing privately owned businesses is a blend of science and judgment. Kwak v. Bozarth, 2023 Mass. App. Unpub. LEXIS 179; 102 Mass. App. Ct. 1116; 2023…

  • Case Law - QuickRead Top Story

    Legal Update

    March 22, 2023

    February 2023 In 1748, Benjamin Franklin famously said, “Time is money.” That concept provides the framework for the Florida Court of Appeals decision in Iarussi v. Iarussi. As often happens in marital dissolutions, the parties resolved many of their issues by agreement, but, when it came to the money, they needed the court’s assistance in dealing with the marital value of a privately owned business and claims for spousal support. One particular issue discussed in this article is whether the trial court erred awarding prejudgment interest on the value of a business the husband managed and was awarded in the…

  • Litigation Consulting - QuickRead Top Story

    The Innocent Spouse

    November 17, 2021

    The Pursuit of Equitable Relief, Separation of Liability, and/or Innocent Spouse Relief The consideration of innocent spouse relief, separation of liability, and equitable relief remedies are important to understand and consider for the purposes for which they were created. This article presents the different options and when one option may be more fitting than another and the relief accorded under each. The merging of two individuals’ lives into the union of marriage has familiar practices: shared checking accounts, title to the marital home, and the filing of a joint tax return are a few of the more common mergers. The…

  • Forensic Accounting - QuickRead Featured - QuickRead Top Story

    Selecting the Right Forensic Accountant

    August 24, 2016

    Can Effect the Outcome of a Case One of the most critical decisions practicing attorneys have to face is the selection of a forensic accountant. The specialized training and expertise of forensic accountants and the role they play, either as consultants or as expert witnesses, can make the difference in the final outcome of a case. However, it is critical that the right person with the right expertise, training, and background be selected. This article will describe the various areas of specialization in which a forensic accountant performs, how to select the right professional for the job, and the benefits…

  • QuickRead Top Story - Valuation/Appraisal

    Planning for Smart Structured Settlements in Divorce

    October 8, 2013

    Structured settlements are a useful tool, but not always advisable! There is plenty of acrimony in marital dissolutions. One way to possibly address the financial concerns of all and reduce acrimony is to consider the use of a structured settlement. A structured settlement replaces one lump payment with smaller payouts over time. It’s a concept frequently used in workers’ compensation or tort cases, but more often, these types of settlements are also being used in divorces. The structured settlement can be an effective tool or prolong the ill will and costs of divorce.