Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Valuing Businesses

By Thomas A. Hutson
March 28, 2008

A question I often receive from attorneys in matrimonial or other litigated matters is whether or not there are any specific standards that a CPA must adhere to when performing a business valuation engagement. Until Jan. 1, 2008, the answer was, effectively, 'No.' As of the beginning of this year, that answer has now changed.

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' (AICPA) Statement on Standards for Valuation Services No. 1 (SSVS#1), titled Valuation of a Business, Business Ownership Interest, Security, or Intangible Asset and issued in 2007, applies to business valuation engagements accepted on or after Jan. 1, 2008. Accordingly, the standard will begin to apply to work performed by CPAs in matrimonial cases going forward. (Although a CPA is not required to be a member of the AICPA to maintain his or her license, most CPAs are members of the AICPA, and for purposes of this article all references to a CPA will assume the CPA is a member of the AICPA.)

Read These Next
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It Image

Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?

Judge Rules Shaquille O'Neal Will Face Securities Lawsuit for Promotion, Sale of NFTs Image

A federal district court in Miami, FL, has ruled that former National Basketball Association star Shaquille O'Neal will have to face a lawsuit over his promotion of unregistered securities in the form of cryptocurrency tokens and that he was a "seller" of these unregistered securities.

A Lawyer's System for Active Reading Image

Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.

Blockchain Domains: New Developments for Brand Owners Image

Blockchain domain names offer decentralized alternatives to traditional DNS-based domain names, promising enhanced security, privacy and censorship resistance. However, these benefits come with significant challenges, particularly for brand owners seeking to protect their trademarks in these new digital spaces.