One of the pieces of advice you’ll undoubtedly hear at the National Divorce Conference in Las Vegas May 8-10 is that a valuation expert should not practice law without a license. Your valuation reports should not be citing court cases, statutory authority, or other legal precedent unless you have been given specific legal instructions to do so. At the same time, it is essential that the analyst read all case precedents in the relevant jurisdiction, since family law valuations are less structured and less consistent than in any other area of valuation practice. (Valuators can access relevant valuation case law in BVLaw, available from BVR.) Of course, there are exceptions, such as certain cases that have become closely associated with factors that an analyst routinely considers, such as the Mandelbaum decision that lays out factors that influence a discount for lack of marketability.

The National Divorce Conference, presented by BVR and the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), will bring together the leading matrimonial attorneys and financial and valuation experts. See you there!