Training Pack Sessions Include:

The Old Normal, The New Abnormal—Executive Compensation in Divorce
Speakers: Mary Cushing Doherty, Sandy Klevan, and Mary Vidas

Two seasoned family law practitioners, Mary Doherty and Mary Vidas, and a well-versed financial expert, Sandra Klevan, explore executive compensation. After providing a summary of executive compensation plans and the implications in a divorce setting during “normal” times, the panel provides insight into the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is currently having on the compensation packages being paid to executives and how they may look post-pandemic.

New Reality: 2020 and the Life-Changing Impact on Attorneys, Financial Experts and Our Clients
Speakers: Stacy Collins, Jim Hitchner, Ken Pia, Lisa Ann Sharpe, and Adam John Wolff

COVID-19 has impacted us all financially, politically, and culturally with unforeseen magnitude. Six months in, the repercussions on divorce attorneys and the experts that work beside them are still being understood, and the uncertainty makes advising clients the most difficult it has been in memory. This veteran group of five all-star matrimonial experts advise on how the macro effect of COVID-19 changes division of property.

To Sum It Up PART I: How Tax Issues, Government Programs and COVID-19 Have Impacted Business Value
Speakers: Jim Hitchner, Michelle Gallagher, and Brian Vertz

Keeping track of the evolving changes is a herculean task, but understanding the implications on a business’s worth is a full-time endeavor. Cut out the noise and get the concise update you need to complete your 2020 engagements. Michelle Gallagher and Jim Hitchner are experts you can trust to synthesize critical issues such as valuation date and cost of capital considerations. Brian Vertz brings the hard questions and attorney’s perspective to help both attorneys and experts get the most out of their relationship.

To Sum It Up, PART II: New Tax Laws, Government Programs and Other Financial Considerations in Family Law During the COVID-19 Era
Speakers: Don DeGrazia, Michelle Gallagher, and Brian Vertz

In 2020, matrimonial litigation attorneys and experts are faced with a new level of complex acronyms that cause many to look fondly back at the TCJA. Attorney Brian Vertz, along with Don DeGrazia and Michelle Gallagher, help you decipher the new programs such as the CARES Act, PPP, FFCRA, PPPFA, and SECURE. These changes have meaningful effects on matrimonial dissolution and knowing how your client is impacted today and in the future is the mark of a top-tier divorce professional. 

Managing Client Expectations in Uncertain Times
Speakers: Joy Feinberg, Jim Godbout, and Kelly Shindell DeLacey

This presentation helps both lawyers and accountants look at the critical concepts of how a case and the valuation issues develop and how the lawyers and accountants support one and other. Since March 2020, COVID-19 has turned each of our worlds upside down. We must educate our clients and the courts differently. Experts Joy Feinberg, Jim Godbout, and Kelly Shindell DeLacey provide examples, tools you can use, and ideas on how to make your zooming experience in any platform better. They also discuss how to handle in courtroom experiences.

Thoughtful Analysis vs. Random Averaging and Other Lazy Forensic Accounting Traps
Speakers: Marie Ebersbacher, Charles Fox Miller, and Sherri Evans

Don’t be that expert! Marie Ebersbacher, Charles Fox Miller, and Sherri Evans look at a few of the top perils of applying generic models and not taking the extra step in forensic accounting analyses. They also explore standardized valuation and other models that do not reflect thoughtful expertise and how attorneys can use those “lazy” analyses to successfully cross-examine an expert.

Where There Was None: Creative Settlements When Working with Distressed Businesses and Catastrophic Losses
Speakers: Jason Naimi, Briggs Stahl, and Tracy Farryl Katz

The global pandemic presents challenges to all aspects of martial dissolutions. The pandemic very likely negatively impacts business values, depending on the valuation date and type of business, as revenues are significantly decreased in 2020 as compared to prior years. Real estate holdings are impacted as tenants are unable to pay rent and parties are seeing their wealth dissipate due to market uncertainty/fluctuations. These uncertainties impact all aspects of a marital dissolution, from property division to support/maintenance. Tracy Farryl Katz, Briggs Stahl, and Jason Naimi help you focus on the challenges practitioners face during the global pandemic and provide creative solutions to assist in case resolution.

Myths and Realities of Using a Discounted Future Benefits Method in Family Law Business Appraisal
Speakers: Ron Seigneur, Darryl Feldman, and Andrew Soshnick

In this fast-paced session, family law attorneys Drew Soshnick and Darryl Feldman along with financial expert Ron Seigneur explore the use of a future economic benefits method (DFB) to value closely held businesses. Learn why the use of future benefits of the propertied spouse, when appropriately adjusted for the reasonable compensation of the individual, is often the best method available for determining the value of a closely held business in a dissolution of marriage proceeding. You'll walk away with an understanding of why a discounted future benefits (DFB) method is as appropriate as a capitalized earnings method and superior to a market-based method in today’s unique economic environment.

I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS SHEET!  How to Effectively Use Spreadsheets to Collect, Analyze, and Present the Facts and Arguments
Speakers: Richard West and Shawn Hyde

This session focuses on how the forensic expert and attorney can collaborate through all phases of a divorce case in order ensure all necessary data has been collected efficiently and then analyzed properly by using various spreadsheets to determine the true economic status of the family. From simple to complex marital balance sheets, to more extensive and more complex analyses such as lifestyle analysis, nonmarital spending, dissipation of assets, income determination, etc., the effective use of spreadsheets can make all the difference in a case!