Rosenthal v. Erber illustrates the pressure and perils of dueling experts. The expert is charged with assisting the court ascertain the facts, rather than furthering the client’s ambition. The case is a reminder to business valuation professionals that ethical considerations are paramount and that doing the contrary leads to courts’ suspecting the role of experts in the process. In the main, valuation experts pride themselves on reasoned analysis and well supported use of professional judgement. As a profession, valuators are confident that most reports uphold the demanding standards of the profession. Judges, on the other hand, do not always view…
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A Minimalist’s Suggestion on How to Lose the Boilerplate What level of detail should valuation analysts include in a detailed report? In this article, the author shares six practices he follows to answer the above question. You probably remember that college professor who said they graded term papers by throwing them down the stairs and giving the ones the farthest down the highest grade. This is how I feel many valuation reports are written. Recently, I was asked by an attorney on a malpractice case to review a valuation report. It looked like a reasonable, professionally done valuation report. But…
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While valuation may generally be part art and part science, rebutting and/or defending a valuation introduces additional types of art and science. The stakes are often higher because interested parties are affected by the contested valuation’s outcome, and the narrative can become more nuanced due to conflicting views on a variety of issues. This article endeavors to cut through the clutter and provide practical tips to address some common themes that arise in rebutting and/or defending a valuation report in a contested situation.