Business Valuation Update
- How to Review a Report’s Valuation Methodology
- Ideas for Solving Two Problems in the BV Profession
- How Do Your Firm’s Benefits Stack Up?
- Using Rule of Thumb Data to Uncover Cooked Books
A SWOT model for quantifying the company-specific risk premium
The valuation community has refined and created methodologies that draw the art closer to a science, with varying degrees of success.
Five Critical Requirements For Tax Valuation Reports—According to Judge Laro
It is always a packed and attentive audience when the Honorable David Laro (U.S. Tax Court) speaks to business valuation professionals—and his articulate, well-aimed remarks at the recent NACVA/IBA 2009 Consultants’ Conference in Boston were no exception.
BV Firm Growth: New Business Opportunities in Exit/Succession Planning
Valuation for litigation, fair value for financial reporting, and traditional, commodity-driven valuations are still profitable practices for BV professionals and their firms but each presents challenges, too. The learning curve (and investment costs) for litigation consulting and fair value work can be high, as can the resulting stress levels. Both require specialized training and resources, and much of the work is still going to the larger firms. By contrast, estate and gift tax valuations, ESOP appraisals ...
Find the Valuation Facts--Connect the Dots--Tell the Story
IRS and Tax Court judges make simple requests of appraisers, but far too often they are ignored. Common sense is lost, and the result, for the government, for taxpayers, and in other courts and disputes as well, is disaster. Users of appraisal services do ...
20 Ideas to Help Make Your IRS Dealings Go Smoother
In August 2014, senior leadership at the Internal Revenue Service contacted me to teach a class for the agency’s 300 staff members involved in valuation. It was to be titled “How to Work With Practitioners.” To prepare for the class, I reached out to valu ...
BVU News and Trends September 2020
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
Pandemic Triggers Chances for Valuers in Exit Planning
Remarks from the AICPA ENGAGE conference on the timely opportunities for financial professionals in exit/succession planning. This article gives some basics on how valuation experts can leverage their experience into this type of consulting.
Additional Takeaways From the 2021 ASA International Conference
Interesting sessions covering risk-free rates, equity risk premia, expert testimony, appraisal reviews, cannabis valuations, and more from the American Society of Appraisers’ International Conference, held in Las Vegas.
Conference Recap: ESOP Valuations at a Crossroads
A key takeaway at the inaugural ESOP Virtual Conference hosted by the American Society of Appraisers was that we may be at a crossroads with regard to valuations of employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). Topics covered included ESOP valuation basics, key issues from recent litigation, ESOP stock purchase transactions, and advanced topics (such as control premiums, repurchase obligations, and synthetic equity).
BV News and Trends December 2021
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
BVU News and Trends January 2018
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
Understanding the Importance of Buy-Sell Agreements to Business Valuation Services
Editor’s Note: Buy-sell agreements are an integral element in exit planning, which is now a topic of great interest in the valuation community. This article provides an overview of the documents that govern the operation of businesses, and the important r ...
Growing Status of Fair Value Sparks Record Attendance at ASA FV Conference
The growing importance of fair value for financial reporting and the ongoing efforts to improve the quality in this area of practice triggered a sell-out for the ASA/USC 13th Annual Fair Value Conference held May 10 in Los Angeles. Here’s a recap.
Supplement: International Glossary of Business Valuation Terms Redlined Version
Download a sample redlined version of the International Glossary of Business Valuation Terms above.
The Other Side of Kohler: IRS Expert Offers Insights
In light of recent public discussion of the Tax Court’s decision in Kohler v. Commissioner, we think it important to further explain some of the facts and findings. We also believe that valuation specialists will benefit from a healthy debate on the sali ...
The View from the Bench: Judges Explain What Makes BV Experts Credible in Court
Credibility: By any standard definition, it connotes the quality, capability, or power to elicit belief. In the decades-long evolution of professional business valuation, the term has become the focus and foundation of any appraisal assignment, as il ...
Determining a Distressed Debtor Company Discount Rate, Part 1
Financial analysis in contested bankruptcy proceedings often involves distressed business valuation issues. Whether a debtor company was solvent at a particular date is often critical in contested bankruptcy proceedings. The fair value of certain assets o ...
Time to Update the Guiding Principles to a Valuation Report
In my 40 years in the business valuation profession, I have seen the typical valuation report go from three or four pages to 50 pages or more. The increasing complexity that has become inherent in the business valuation community has mandated a good part ...
Implied Minority Discount in Statutory Fair Value: The Doctrine that Just Won’t Die
If your fair value appraisal shows up in the Delaware Chancery Court, it might be best to start by recalling a famous line from the movie Cool Hand Luke: “What we have here is a failure to communicate.”
BVU News and Trends October 2018
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
BV News and Trends March 2022
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
What to Know From the 2023 ASA International Conference, Part 2
More takeaways from the ASA’s annual conference, on the topics of personal goodwill, new SEC valuation requirements for PE/VC funds, customer concentration, buy-sell agreements, equity compensation, real estate-centric entities, and more.
Two Cases Deliver Knockout Punch to IRS’s Objections to Defined Value Clauses
On the heels of the IRS s loss in Estate of Christiansen v. Comm r, 2009 WL 3789908 (C.A.8)(Nov.13, 2009), in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit upheld a formula disclaimer of assets similar to a defined value clause, the Tax Court has now strongly affirmed the use of these clauses by tax attorneys, estate planners, and appraisers in Estate of Petter v. Comm r, 2009 WL 4598137(U.S. Tax Ct.)(Dec. 7, 2009 ...
BVU News and Trends May 2020
A monthly roundup of key developments of interest to business valuation experts.
Public Shareholders, Fair Value, and the ‘Market-Out Exception’ in Appraisal Statutes
Introduction: public shareholders and appraisal rights. Appraisal is a right and a remedy. Available by statute in all states, appraisal provides disgruntled shareholders the right “to require the corporation to pay them the ‘fair value’ of their shares ...