Idaho Supreme Court Affirms Magistrate Judge’s Opinion Regarding Personal Goodwill

December 20, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Lamm v. Preston, 2023 This was a tip of the iceberg Idaho Supreme Court decision on a very complex divorce case. This particular decision related to the magistrate court’s order, upheld by the district court, as to the fair market value of one of the parties’ business, Black Sage Acquisition LLC. The magistrate court determined  Continue Reading »


Delaware Court Grants in Some Cases and Denies in Others Motions to Exclude Expert Witnesses and Certain Evidence to be Presented

December 6, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

LCT Capital, LLC v. NGL Energy Partners LP This case dealt with motions related to an ongoing case in the court. The court offered both orders and opinions to resolve the issues at hand. The plaintiff had a Daubert motion to exclude the opinions of the defendant’s rebuttal expert, Lori Lancaster, and the defendant’s Daubert  Continue Reading »


U.S. District Court Partially Excludes Witness in Securities Value Case and Allows Rebuttal Witness

November 22, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

In re Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Litig. A pharmaceuticals company, Navidea, sued its former CEO, Michael Goldberg, for, among other things, breach of contract and for a declaratory judgment establishing the contractual rights and obligations of the parties. These issues related to an agreement reached between the parties in settlement of their dispute. This resulted in counterclaims  Continue Reading »


Illinois Appeals Court Affirms Trial Court’s Acceptance of Real Estate Value in Absence of Wife’s Submission of a Competing Value

November 8, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

In re Trapp, 2022 IL App The primary issue, for valuation purposes, of this Illinois appeal of a divorce decree was the appeal court’s affirmation of the trial court’s decision to accept the valuation of the husband’s business valuation expert, Neil Gerber, as to the value of Trapp Properties Inc. Trapp Properties’ primary assets were  Continue Reading »


Taxpayer Is Denied Charitable Deduction for a Conservation Easement, and Gross Valuation Misstatement Penalties Are Applied

October 24, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Brooks v. Comm’r The IRS (respondent) issued a notice of deficiency to Kenneth M. Brooks and Anita Wolke Brooks (petitioners) in which the respondent disallowed carryover charitable contribution deductions relating to the petitioners’ interest in the Kenneth Brooks and Anita Wolke Brooks Family LLC’s noncash charitable contribution of a conservation easement. The questions were whether  Continue Reading »


U.S. District Court Decides Some Issues for Government and Some for Defendants But Very Little in Damages in an ERISA ESOP Case

October 11, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Walsh v. Preston, 2022  Background. On Dec. 30, 2014, the plaintiff, Walsh (Secretary of Labor), filed this action pursuant to ERISA against the defendants. The complaint alleged the following: (1) breach of fiduciary duties; (2) engaging in prohibited transactions; and (3) co-liability of defendants. “The Secretary’s claims relate to two (2) separate transactions between Robert  Continue Reading »


Mississippi Appeals Court En Banc Remands for Valuation of a Small Used-Car Business With Dissents From Several Judges

September 27, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Brown v. Brown, 2022 In this Mississippi divorce case, the appellate court en banc reversed in part and remanded in part, asking the trial court to determine whether certain items were marital property and determine the values for certain marital properties so a proper distribution of marital property can be made. Included was a used-car  Continue Reading »


Tennessee Appeals Court Affirms Trial Court Decision on Spousal Support and on the Value of Husband’s Medical Practice

September 13, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Chase v. Chase, 2022 On appeal, the husband asked the court to review whether the wife needed alimony given the assets she otherwise received in the equitable distribution and her earning capacity as a pharmacist, whether an award of rehabilitative alimony and alimony in futuro by the trial court is appropriate, and whether the trial  Continue Reading »


Delaware Chancery Court Determines Fair Value of Minority Interest Buyout—Cites Differences in Cash-Flow Assumptions as Cause for Large Discrepancy in Value

August 30, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Ramcell, Inc. v Alltel Corp., 2022 Del. In this appraisal action to determine fair value, petitioner Ramcell Inc. exercised its appraisal rights in asking for a statutory appraisal of the value of its 155 shares of Jackson Cellular Telephone Co. Inc. The respondent, Alltel Corp. (dba Verizon Wireless), had converted the 155 shares at a  Continue Reading »


U.S. District Court in California Grants in Part and Denies in Part Motions of Dismissal by Company Against Blockchain Researcher

August 16, 2023 | Court Rulings, Valuations

Zamfir v CasperLabs, LLC The defendant, Casper Labs LLC, in this trademark dispute in U.S. District Court (California) moved for dismissal of eight causes of action from plaintiff Vlad Zamfir’s second amended complaint. The actions dealt primarily with trademark infringement and alleged damages therefrom. The actions also included allegations of fraud and misrepresentation under California  Continue Reading »