In a divorce matter in Indiana, the husband and wife each owned a 50% interest in a crop-dusting business. The wife’s valuation expert used the excess earnings method and came up with a value of $558,000. The husband’s expert criticized the use of the excess earnings method, opting for an income approach to come up with a value of $204,000. Both experts also applied a 5% discount for lack of control (DLOC). The trial court adopted the husband’s valuation, and the wife appealed.

Dust settles: The appellate court ruled that the trial court “did not err” in adopting the husband’s expert’s valuation, but it rejected the DLOC, instructing the trial court to add the DLOC amount back into the valuation.

The case is Townsend v. Townsend, 2024 Ind. App. Unpub. LEXIS 904, and a case analysis and full court opinion are on the BVLaw platform.