This session will cover valuation standards for reports, writing the affirmative and rebuttal reports, and best practices for report writing
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We will assess the current and future path of the economy, with a focus on the interaction of global monetary policy, trade policy, and politics. We will also address the impact of demographics on government financing and the opportunities and risks in financial markets.
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Often there is a need to consider causality in measuring business interruption losses. It may mean isolating the effects of wide-area damage caused by a disastrous catastrophe, accounting for changing economic conditions, or accounting for business model changes. This course will start with a precursor explaining the purpose of business interruption insurance policies and then advance to illustrate best practices in isolating cause and effect in measuring such losses.
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In the past four years, the Delaware Supreme Court has issued several major opinions that addressed transaction-related corporate valuations. The presentation will discuss these opinions, as well as numerous valuation-related Court of Chancery in the same period. It will contrast the Delaware courts’ views on arm’s-length transactions vs. related party transactions and will discuss the impact of those view on statutory appraisals. It will also discuss the courts’ views on valuation methods, with a focus on inputs into DCF calculations.
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The session will outline the technological, forensic and legal tools available to trace and recover cryptocurrency. Learning objectives include providing attendees with an overview of:
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There have been many attempts to connect Big Data and patent value over the last 30 or so years. Manuel Tragtenberg conducted some of the preliminary research in the area that extends back to the 1980’s, though recent researchers have sought to drive further clarity on patent value deduction with the intersection of Big Data analytics. However, the published research consistently fails to address what drives actual value specifically in patents, which hinges on creating real economic value.
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Whether searching for red flags at the start of a fraud risk assessment or evaluating financial condition for the purpose of a business valuation, financial statement analysis is a cornerstone of most any forensic or valuation assignment. This course will utilize an interactive case study to illustrate comprehensive financial statement analysis, focusing not only on how to complete relevant calculations but also how to interpret them. Participants will be guided thru how to measure key metrics and then, in small groups, will utilize a Microsoft Excel template to conduct their own analysis and share their findings with the class.
After attending this course attendees will be better able to:
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A panel comprised of experienced practitioners discussed practical issues and potential pitfalls that arise in the context of internal investigations. The panel will offered insights on lessons learned in prior investigations and also discussed several investigations that suffered from serious missteps. This session will review the forensic accountants role in Internal Corporate Investigations. It will explore how the forensic accountant works with In-House and Outside Counsel in these type of engagements. There will be an Outside Counsel and In-House Counsel co-presenting with the forensic accountant to ensure a view from the various perspectives of the scope, duties, and various tasks the forensic accountant my be asked to due by counsel. In addition, there will be a discussion of the legal framework and limitations that the forensic accountant needs to be aware of when assisting in Internal Corporate Investigations.
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Valuations of a closely held business in the context of litigation such as in a contentious divorce, shareholder dispute, damages matter or other litigated corporate matter can be multifaceted and may require additional forensic investigative scrutiny. As such, it is important to consider the potential forensic implications of valuation adjustments as they may lead to other analyses. For example, in a divorce business appraisal, a valuation adjustment for discretionary (personal) expenses may, in turn, provide an implied “true income” and pay ability of a spouse. In a dissenting shareholder matter, a valuation adjustment to true-up margins for variations in expenses not consistent with the industry/peers may insinuate dissipation of business assets and require further forensic investigations. These are but two examples - this session will address other examples you will likely face.
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The session will be a case study of a damages rebuttal analysis where plaintiffs’ experts (one on causation and one on damages) had speculative analyses that relied heavily on assumptions from management about the prospects of their business. It will also explore the damages expert’s use of an academic model that had limited to no track record in economic damages
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Structuring a business sale transactions can affect the cash flow from a potential sale as well as the taxes that would be paid on a sale. The structure ultimately affects the value a buyer is willing to pay or a seller is willing to accept for a transaction. In this presentation you will learn about how the structure of a transaction could affect the ultimate cash flow a seller receives and impacts the price the parties negotiate.
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In measuring economic damages, or in assessing business value, the economic environment within which a business operates is commonly a key factor. As economic conditions change, so too may expectations of a business’s future financial performance. This course will introduce core macroeconomic principals and resources to consider in assessing, or defending, the reasonableness of your projections.
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The purpose of this session is to provide insights into conducting international investigations from both a legal and accounting perspective. The session will explore challenges and solutions faced while performing investigation across borders.
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As financial analysts and experts we are often required to explain complex financial topics to the lay-person; whether a judge, a jury, or even our client. This session will provide helpful techniques to improve your ability to communicate effectively and persuasively with an audience that may not share your unique knowledge and experience with a complex topic. Specific techniques covered will include ______________________ and effective use of visual aids.
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Personal Goodwill continues to be a popular topic for business valuation professionals. While it is primarily used in divorce situations, it has other implications such as tax transactions. This presentation will delve into the three components of goodwill as well as discuss related topics. Case law in this area continues to expand and will also be discussed in the presentation
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The session will provide a deeper dive into the new SSFS 1 set to roll out in 2020, provide practitioners with the tools to know when to apply SSFS 1, how to deal with cross examination and deposition questions regarding the requirements of SSFS 1, how to testify in a fraud case under SSFS 1, and discuss some of the common questions and FAQs about SSFS 1 during the exposure period.
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This session will update members on new practice aids launched since last year's conference.
1. Attaining Reasonable Certainty in Economic Damages Calculations: Revenues, Costs, and Best Evidence
2. Communications in Litigation and Dispute Services
3. Calculating Lost Profits
4. IP Damages PA
5. Valuation of Portfolio Company Investments of Venture Capital and Private Equity Funds and Other Investment Companies
6. Financial Instruments Performance Framework
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Artificial intelligence has been with us for decades. But today’s machines are gaining the ability to learn from data and make sophisticated predictions—more cheaply, and more accurately, than human beings. Like the advent of the Internet and the dot-com explosion, machine learning is set to affect foundational changes to our lives (think driverless cars—but that’s just the beginning). From navigation to the Internet of Things, manufacturing to agriculture, health care to the robotic workers set to replace even top-level positions, deep learning will open as many doors as it will close. And to understand these shifts, experts turn to Ajay Agrawal. A leading authority in AI, the co-author of Prediction Machines—and, as a business speaker, a great explainer of complex economic forces—he translates the sweeping power of machines and breaks down why it all matters. How can we take advantage of the growing market for AI? How can we allocate capital and investments today to best prepare for tomorrow? How do we prepare for the disruptions—to long-standing industries, to millions of jobs, and to age-old notions about work, employment, and leisure—that will result? No matter who you are or where you work—a company, an investor, a university or government—Agrawal will help you adapt, and thrive, throughout this economy-wide transformation
This session will discuss the various methods available to a valuer under all three approaches to value
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Financial service professionals and investigators will learn how to conduct business intelligence investigations, due diligence, asset and enhanced background checks using the latest and most effective cybertools.
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This session will leverage Jonathan Wolfe’s nearly 20 years of ABA Section of Family Law leadership, and discuss the Section’s current areas of focus, and what the future of family law looks like in the coming years for clients, attorneys and experts.
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Session covers investigation report writing, focusing on all other types of reports other than those required under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 26 (e.g., non-expert witness report). The session will review elements, visual aids, types of reports, and will also cover the new forensic standard.
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This session will focus on the integration and partnership of the Computer Forensics and the Forensic Accounting team in Forensic investigations. We will be focusing on the increasing involvement and benefit that Computer Forensic Specialists add to an investigation. The session will also highlight successful case examples that involved both services, pitfalls of not securing electronic information correctly and common Computer Forensic Tools in 2019.
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This session will leverage Mr. Dowd’s nearly 20 years of ABA Section of Litigation leadership roles, and discuss the Section’s current areas of focus, and what the future of litigation may look like in the coming years for clients, attorneys and experts.
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TCJA has been implemented for over a year. We will dive into the changes to valuation models as a result of the TCJA and what we have seen in practice. How are different folks handling various aspects of the change and which are more acceptable than others. Will also consider how to put it in practice.
While not ideal, unfavorable facts or insufficient data are often an unavoidable reality in many cases involving an expert opinion. How an expert deals with these situations can make or break a case. This session will explore how to strategize with counsel in acknowledging and analyzing weaknesses in a case which may affect an expert’s analysis and opinions.
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This session will provide the key element for all data analytics projects - good data! Through a recognized data analytics methodology, learn techniques to validate your data for completeness and accuracy and that is critical for all Forensic engagements.
ASC 820 Fair Value Measurements describes the cost approach to valuation as the cost to a market participant to buy an asset of comparable utility, adjusted for obsolescence. Financial valuation specialist in financial reporting often rely upon the work of experts in other disciplines, such as real estate appraisers. The financial valuation expert may encounter circumstances where the returns on assets may not be sufficient for the indicated value. In these circumstances, the financial valuation specialist and the real estate appraiser may consider the application of obsolescence on the fair value of the individual assets. In this session Mark will describe situations where application of economic obsolescence may be appropriate.
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What are the valuation equivalents to envy, gluttony, sloth, and the like? In this session, our speakers will identify and describe for participants the seven deadly sins of valuations.
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This session will provide an overview of recent accounting standard-setting activities impacting the business valuation profession. We will also discuss active projects on the FASB agenda and how those might impact the profession going forward.
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This session is for all levels, geared towards narrowing the gap between seasoned practitioners and the NexGen leaders of our professional industry. Real life examples and techniques will be discussed on how to train, motivate and retain team members from staff to management level FVS professionals. The session will help seasoned practitioners to understand and become aware of the challenges in grooming and retaining [young] professionals. Staff turnover hurts an organization in the long run. How to train your staff so they can leave but manage them so they don't want to is the goal. People are a Firms #1 Resource. Attendees will be able to:
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Transactions regularly turn into disputes. Financial experts working in the transaction and disputes streams see deals when they've gone horribly wrong. This session will review examples of broken deals and how they were resolved with support from experts in valuation and loss quantification. There will also be a discussion, for each case, of how the dispute could have been avoided.
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The session will provide a deeper dive into the new SSFS 1 set to roll out in 2020, provide practitioners with the tools to know when to apply SSFS 1, how to deal with cross examination and deposition questions regarding the requirements of SSFS 1, how to testify in a fraud case under SSFS 1, and discuss some of the common questions and FAQs about SSFS 1 during the exposure period.
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What are the valuation equivalents to envy, gluttony, sloth, and the like? In this session, our speakers will identify and describe for participants the seven deadly sins of valuations.
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is class will examine the Dark Web, the channels used to institute private sales and exchanges, and criminal behavior. In this intermediate to advanced hands-on class, participants will gain a thorough understanding of the Dark Web—criminality, anonymity, counterfeit products, child pornography, and human trafficking; learn the directory structures of the Dark Web; and learn Dark Web languages like Tor and Tails and the lingo of this underworld. Training will include exploring dark web channels for content and finding the resources and specialized search engines for searching against Dark Web content.
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Courts have accepted the increase or “gross-up” of damages claims to account for an increase in taxes owed on a lump-sum award versus the taxes that would have been owed but-for the alleged wrongful act. The presentation will touch on supportive case law and methods for quantifying such impacts.
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This session will provide an overview the gatekeeping function and relevant cases, strategies for managing a challenge to professional opinions, and examples of successful and unsuccessful defenses to challenges.
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We will be discussing some of the changes and impacts on forensic and valuation professionals of the progression to a more global integrated environment for professionals.
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This session will discuss techniques and best practices for conveying report findings in a logical, effective, and easy to understand manner.
Attendees will leave with tips and techniques as to best practices, language usage, and readability when writing valuation and litigation reports.
While it is convenient to distinguish between the income and market approaches to value, one should be careful not to overstate the differences. After all, the approaches share a common objective of describing how a transaction for the subject asset would occur on an arm's-length basis at the valuation date. In this session we will explore:
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Cash tracing has multiple applications. It can be used to differentiate separate and marital property, identify undisclosed assets, prove embezzlement, and more. This course will utilize a case study to illustrate best practices in conducting such investigations. It will guide participants thru a cash tracing analysis from start to finish, providing tips and tools you can apply in your next case.
After attending this course participants will be better able to:
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We explore the various roles for forensic accountants in white collar criminal defense matters, both pre and post indictment, and how to protect their work from overreaching government investigators. From assessing financial loss under the protections of the attorney-client relationship in the midst of an active grand jury investigation, to debunking misplaced government hypotheses about revenue and expenses in the middle of trial, the forensic accountant is an invaluable member of the white collar criminal defense lawyer’s team when that relationship is properly constructed. From engagement, to trial testimony, to sentencing, this panel explores the wide ranging opportunities for forensic accountants in the white collar criminal defense space, and how to protect those engagements from some common pitfalls and misconceptions
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This session will discuss use-cases on how to apply Computer Aided Audit Tools, Visualization, and Automation into Forensic engagements. Specifically, learn the building blocks of how (a) IDEA (or ACL) supports forensic audits; (b) Tableau (or PowerBI) helps tell a story with your data; and (c) Automation streamlines various time-consuming tasks.
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This session will focus on the various components that are often utilized when building economic damage models. Developing credible economic damage models is a complex exercise with a number of components including, but not limited to, historical financial information, projected financial information, industry research, market research, case law, and much more. This session will explore the various components utilized in economic damage models and help the practitioner better understand how the various pieces of an economic damages puzzle can come together to form a credible model.
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The session will dive into the brain of an attorney, and how they view cross-examination, and some of the theory, strategies, and methods employed by attorneys. It will also cover things to look out for and how to stick to your points, expertise and opinions.
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Damages experts are ever-more frequently being challenged on the reliability of their opinion evidence under the Daubert standard. One of the most commonly cited reasons for excluding experts is that their analyses were not supported by sufficient facts or data. This session will use detailed examples from case law to identify specific risk-areas that CPAs need to be aware of when working on cases with data issues, and the types of procedures they can use to protect themselves from being excluded as an expert witness at trial. This presentation will provide practical, hands-on insights directly relevant to both US and Canadian practitioners. The presentation will be delivered in a high-energy and interactive manner that will aim to capture the interest of the audience. Attendees will:
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Session covers roles accountants play in bankruptcy engagements, nuances regarding each of the roles, and interplay between attorney and forensic accountant/financial advisor in distressed situations. Matters including Assignment for the benefit of Creditors, Receiverships, Bankruptcies, and Liquidating Trusts: Learning objectives as follows:
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Valuations are still are critical part of estate planning. This session will provide some current considerations in estate planning and how valuations play into the estate planning process.
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In the event a company has both voting and non-voting classes of stock, there may be an observed (or inferred) price difference between the two – the generally understood concept of “greater value for greater rights” would lead us to assume such would usually be in favor of the voting stock. However, when substantial numbers of both voting and non-voting shares are outstanding, one vote owned by a marginal investor outside the control group is likely not enough to impact corporate decisions. Further, commonly-used methods to measure empirical price differences among listed securities and/or transactions may not adequately express the relevant differential. This panel will discuss our recent research and findings on this topic as regards the relative values of voting, non-voting, and super-voting shares. Session covers Houlihan Lokey’s recent research and filings regarding the potential premia/discounts based on historical studies and more detailed and nuanced analyses. Specific areas of discussion include: -Other factors which may impact price -Analytical frameworks to screen for comparable datapoints -Interpretation of the outputs
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For the most part, our traditional client service model is 1-to-1, 1-and-done. That means last year’s clients must be replaced this year to maintain the “old” revenue status quo. And to grow, we must add more new clients than the number that dropped off. Then that many more clients need to be replaced the following year to maintain the “new” revenue status quo. But it is more than just finding new clients. Because even if we are good at attracting leads and converting them into new clients, we ultimately must deliver the work … each year … every year … into perpetuity. And since there are only so many hours in a day, we can only serve so many clients in a year. This model does not scale. We are pushing the boulder up a hill; we are the mythical Sisyphus. There is an alternative – a 1-to-many business model that can augment our 1-to-1 client service model and give us more time, money, and freedom in our practices.
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You may have stunning credentials, specialized knowledge and prepare a faultless analysis, but you need more than that to engage and influence a jury. You must have finely tuned “soft” skills – the ability to relate to them, to communicate complex ideas in an easy-to-absorb manner, and to defend without being defensive. Mastery of these soft skills determine whether you are only an expert on paper, or an expert who can help win cases. In this presentation learn what jurors want and why.
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This session is intended for those who have little or no experience in testifying before a trier of fact in a courtroom, arbitration hearing or other venue. Presenters will report the results of a survey of new testifiers in an attempt to identify and address areas of concern. Attendees will receive tips on testifying from the perspectives of both a new and an experienced testifier.
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The cost of capital is one the most important considerations in estimating value using the income approach. In this session, participants will learn the theory underlying the cost of capital, as well as practical applications using the three major sources for empirical cost of capital data:
1. Duff & Phelps Cost of Capital Pro
2. BVR Cost of Capital Navigator
3. Damodaran
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Deposition itself is not a trial, nor is it an opportunity to convince anyone, especially the other lawyer, about how right you are. Nothing you say will "win" the case, however something you say may "lose" the case. In this session you will
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Do you know the difference between and option and a warrant? Is the Black-Scholes model really the one-size-fits-all tool we often make it out to be? This session will explore the advanced aspects of private company warrant valuation—giving you the tools to move beyond the simple and straight-forward to the complex and nuanced analysis that savvy clients demand.
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