A sampling of new business valuation case digests added to BVLaw


Interplan Architects, Inc. v. C.L. Thomas, Inc., 2010 WL 3982273 (S.D. Tex.)(Oct. 8, 2010)

Court excludes expert evidence regarding copyright infringement that does not provide specific causal link between defendant’s gross revenues from infringement and the copyrighted works.

Experts: Walter Bratic (plaintiff); James Mandel, Frances Bologna, and Kenneth Kolkhurst (defendant)

Judge: Ellison

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/Texas

Court: U.S. District Court

Type of case: IP

In re Chemtura Corp., 2010 WL 4272727 (Bkrtcy. S.D. NY.)(Oct. 29, 2010)

Bankruptcy court finds total enterprise value for large specialty chemical company based on DCF as well as comparable companies and transactions analysis.

Experts: Lazard Freres (debtors); UBS (equity committee); and Houlihan, Lockey, Howard & Zukin (creditors committee)

Judge: Gerber

State/Jurisdiction: Federal, New York

Court: U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Type of case: bankruptcy

Metro Tech Corp. v. TUV Rheinland of N.A., 2010 WL 4117123 (D. Puerto Rico.)(Oct. 18, 2010); and Metro Tech Corp. v. TUV Rheinland of N.A., 2010 WL 4117115 (D. Puerto Rico.) (Oct. 18, 2010)

Court limits damages to breach of contract to those that can be ascertained with reasonable certainty, and qualifies first-time lost profits plaintiff’s expert to testify re: same.

Experts: Dr. Juan Lara-Fontanez (plaintiffs)

Judge:  Pieras

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/ Puerto Rico

Court: U.S. District Court

Type of case: contract

In re Fairvue Club Properties, 2010 WL 4501959 (Bkrtcy. M.D. Tenn.)(Nov. 2, 2010) Lender uses cash flow projections by the debtors’ appraiser to show that the proposed reorganization plan for two golf clubs is unfair and not feasible.

Experts:  Andy Hinds (debtors); Miles McDonald and Andrew Cantor (lender)

Judge: Paine

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/ Tennessee

Court: U.S. Bankruptcy court

Type of case:  bankruptcy

McCabe v. Capital Mercury Apparel, 2010 WL 4507443(S.D. N.Y.)(Nov. 9, 2010)

ESOP administrator did not breach duty of care when relying on an appraisal that valued the company a year before its eventual liquidation and sale.

Experts: Houlihan Lokey

Judge:  Scheindlin

State/Jurisdiction: Federal, New York

Court: U.S. District Court

Type of case: ESOP

Wilson v. Wilson, 2010 WL 4723461 (W. Va.)(Sept. 21, 2010)

West Virginia Supreme Court finds that construction management fees, conditioned on completion of a project, are analogous to attorney contingency fee contracts and subject to same rules of equitable division.

Experts:  Kenneth Apple (wife)

Judge:  Workman

State/Jurisdiction: West Virginia

Court: Supreme Court

Type of case: marital dissolution

SV Investment Partners v. Thoughtworks, Inc., 2010 WL 4547204 (Del. Ch.)(Sept. 8, 2010)

Delaware Chancery finds that “funds legally available” for corporate stock redemption requires more than calculating a balance sheet surplus valuation.

Experts: Laura Stamm

Judge:  Laster

State/Jurisdiction: Delaware

Court: Chancery Court

Type of case:  securities

In re Citigroup, Inc. Securities Litigation, 2010 WL 4484650 (S.D.N.Y.)(Nov. 9, 2010)

Court denies motion to dismiss subprime asset litigation, based on plaintiff’s allegations that Citigroup overvalued its collateral debt obligations and understated its risk.

Experts: [unnamed]

Judge: Stein

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/New York

Court: U.S. District Court, New York

Type of case: securities

In re Capmark Financial Group, 2010 WL 4313046 (Bkrtcy. D. Del.)(Nov. 1, 2010)

Bankruptcy court confirms reorganization plan based in large part of “put option” approach to valuing corporate insider guaranties.

Experts: Dr. Timothy Luerhman and Edwin Litolff (debtors); Bradley Geer (creditors committee)

Judge:  Sontchi

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/Delaware

Court: bankruptcy

Type of case:  bankruptcy

Balicki v. Balicki, 2010 PA. Super. 134 (July 30, 2010)

Pennsylvania statute requires family courts to consider tax and other cost ramifications associated with each asset to be divided in divorce.

Experts: [unnamed]

Judge:  Allen

State/Jurisdiction: Pennsylvania

Court: court of appeals

Type of case:  marital dissolution

Ho Myung Moolsan, Co. Ltd. v. Manitou Mineral Water, Inc., 2010 WL 4892646 (S.D.N.Y.)(Dec. 2, 2010)

Court strikes expert’s $133 million lost profits damages for lack of any documentary evidence regarding actual sales made by the plaintiff.

Experts: Don Smith (plaintiff)

Judge:  Holwell

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/ New York

Court: U.S. District Court

Type of case: contract

In re Boston Generating, 2010 WL 4922578 (Bkrtcy. S.D.N.Y.)(Dec. 3, 2010) Court authorizes $1.1 billion asset sale of the debtors, despite DCF by lenders’ expert that shows $13.8 billion value.

Experts: Judah Rose (lenders)

Judge: Chapman

State/Jurisdiction: Federal/ New York

Court: bankruptcy

Type of case: bankruptcy

In re Marriage of Hagar, 2010 WL 4807559 (Iowa App.)(Nov. 24, 2010)

Court declines to accept “calculation of value” by CPA expert in divorce, because it relied on industry rules of thumb and lacked required level of judgment compared to complete valuation.

Experts: Ron Helle (husband)

Judge: Eisenhauer

State/Jurisdiction: Iowa

Court: Court of Appeals

Type of case: marital dissolution

Graves v. Tomlinson, 2010 WL 4825624 (Tex. App.-Hous.(14 Dist.))(Nov. 30, 2010)

Husband presents two experts to value wife’s three health care businesses, a forensic accountant to normalize the records and a business valuation expert to assess value under all three approaches.

Experts: Bill Stewart (wife); Gregory Schuelke and David Palmer (husband)

Judge: Boyce

State/Jurisdiction: Texas

Court: Court of Appeals

Type of case: marital dissolution

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