This month's issue of Valuation & Litigation Advisory Insights includes the following articles:

• Reality TV and Related-Party Transactions in Litigious Valuation Engagements
• Boltar Illustrates the Dangers of Expert Advocacy
• Poking Holes in Your Damages Case

Reality TV and Related-Party Transactions in Litigious Valuation Engagements
By Sean R. Saari, CPA/ABV, CVA, MBA

My wife loves “reality” TV shows - Big Brother, Survivor, The Bachelor, The Apprentice, pretty much any show on Bravo, and the list goes...

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has introduced a new online registration system for charities that solicit in the state.  The new system, introduced December 1, 2011, will streamline annual filings and enhance transparency and accountability within the charitable sector. 

Soon, all filings will be completed online through the new charitable registration system.  The new system will eliminate the need for paper forms, more accurately determine required fees and make reporting requirements in...

Just when you may have thought your compliance and security needs are taken care of; out comes another aspect of compliance and security to worry about: HIPAA Compliance Audits. HIPAA audits have evolved, and now must fulfill requirements of Section 13411 of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act) to cover new concerns for medical records. These HITECH requirements ensure that covered entities and their business associates are in compliance with the...

Captive insurance companies are often owned by a large sophisticated financial entity, because there are minimum net worth and other regulatory requirements.  In many cases, the regulatory authority will accept a letter of credit in lieu of an actual cash investment for the initial capital requirements of the captive.  This results in “GAAP exception” financial reporting but is perfectly acceptable to the regulator.

Normally, single sponsor captives are wholly-owned subsidiaries and are included...

If you have been working a long time, you may be looking forward to retirement in the not-so-distant future. Hopefully, you will be in good health at that time and able to pursue your favorite activities.

But the “golden years” may be tarnished if you are not careful. Here are five common mistakes that can hinder your ability to retire comfortably and securely.

1. You are overburdened with debt. Owing money is not necessarily fatal to a happy retirement. But credit card debt with high interest...

This month's Special Delivery e-newsletter includes:

• New Marketing Website Coming Soon, New E-Book Available Now
• Recent Developments That May Affect Your Tax Situation
• Alternative Minimum Tax: Now It's Personal
• How to Maximize Estate-tax Exemptions
• How to Swing a Like-kind Exchange
• A Quick Guide to Quickbooks in the Cloud
• Join the 123 College Facebook Page

New Marketing Website Coming Soon, New E-Book Available Now

Keep an eye on your inbox, because in just a few days, we'll be announcing the launch of...

Don’t forget to check out part one (keyword selection) and part two (keyword traffic estimation). 

Now that you’ve selected targeted keywords for your AdWords campaign, it’s time to start creating your ads. Google has a specific set of character limits that you must follow in each of your ads –

Title (Blue underlined text): 25 characters

Ad Text: 70 characters

Display URL (Green text): 35 characters

There are also a set of parameters around your ad content including:

• User experience
• Accuracy
• Legal...

This month's issue of Valuation & Litigation Advisory Insights includes the following articles:

• Intangible Assets – If I cannot See Them, What Are They?
• What is the value of intellectual property
• The perfect exit strategy: Don’t leave it to chance

Intangible Assets – If I Cannot See Them, What Are They?

“All arguments concerning existence are founded on the relation of cause and effect.” - David Hume

In the quote above, David Hume, a famous philosopher, says that the basis of existence is founded in...

Tax qualified retirement plans are required to hold employer and employee contributions in an irrevocable trust, which is separate from the employer’s funds.  ERISA, which governs these programs, creates various types of legal liability for a plan’s fiduciaries.   Department of Labor penalties and litigation from plan participants can arise, and can be brought against an individual fiduciary.  The issue of who is or is not a fiduciary is not determined solely by a person’s title.  

ERISA’s...

This spring, companies who sponsor 401(k) plans can expect their inbox to be full of new information.  The Department of Labor’s plan fee disclosure rules are set to take effect April 1, 2012.  Service providers of 401(k) plans will then be required to provide employers with figures for the direct and indirect compensation they receive to service plans.  They will now need to disclose recordkeeping fees separately from all other fee disclosures. They also must detail indirect compensation, such...

“All arguments concerning existence are founded on the relation of cause and effect.” - David Hume

In the quote above, David Hume, a famous philosopher, says that the basis of existence is founded in cause and effect.  Cause and effect is simple to picture for tangible objects – if I cause my finger to type a letter on the keyboard, that letter shows up on my computer screen.  It becomes a little more difficult to picture cause and effect with intangible things – if I greet a stranger on the...

When your identity has been stolen, you will need to contact your credit card companies, your banks, the three major credit bureaus, and local, state, or federal law enforcement authorities. Click here to read part one of this article which looks at the involvement of your credit card companies and banks.

The three major credit bureaus

If your credit cards have been lost or stolen, call the fraud number of any one of the three national credit reporting agencies:

1. Equifax (888) 766-0008
2. Experian...

You've read about it, and you thought it would never happen to you. But suddenly your bank account is empty, your credit card bills are through the roof, and you're getting late notices for accounts you don't own. Your identity has been stolen. What now?

Time is money

To minimize your losses, act fast. Contact, in this order:

• Your credit card companies
• Your bank
• The three major credit bureaus
• Local, state, or federal law enforcement authorities

Your credit card companies

Credit card companies are...

Increased transparency is the trend in the world of financial reporting, and this trend is clearly reflected in the new Accounting Standards Update (ASU) for companies that participate in multiemployer defined benefit pension plans. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) recently completed redeliberations on the standard that becomes effective for public companies later this year. The FASB’s September 2010 Exposure Draft on multiemployer defined benefit pension plans generated...

Whether they're snatching your purse, diving into your dumpster, stealing your mail, or hacking into your computer, they're out to get you. Who are they? Identity thieves.

Identity thieves can empty your bank account, max out your credit cards, open new accounts in your name, and purchase furniture, cars, and even homes on the basis of your credit history. If they give your personal information to the police during an arrest and then don't show up for a court date, you may be...

New Tax Credit

Are you ready to take advantage of the new InvestOhio tax credit?  The registration period is now open and registration must be completed before you can apply for the credit. The application date is expected to be the first full week in December and now is the time to ensure that you are ready to apply.
 
What is InvestOhio?

InvestOhio is a tool for helping Ohio small businesses gain the capital they need to succeed and create jobs.  Through the program, individuals who invest up to...

November 28, 2011 – CLEVELAND – Skoda Minotti, a CPA, business and financial advisory firm, is proud to announce that Michael Trabert, CPA, CVA, CMAP, CEPA recently earned the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) designation, after completing the Institute’s intensive CEPA program. With this designation, Trabert joins an exclusive group of business advisors worldwide who have received this credential.
 
Leading Skoda Minotti’s Exit Planning Services Group, Trabert helps clients by creating a...

• IRS Changes Postion on Who Must Approve Governance Policies
• IRS Releases New Form 8940, Request for Miscellaneous Determinations
• AICP Comments on Revised For 99-0
• Navigating Through the Acounting for Joint Activities
• Executive Compensation: Is it reasonable?
• Updates From the IRS
• Private Foundation Foreign Giving

In the wake of MF Global Holdings LTD’s bankruptcy, clients, regulators, and creditors are all attempting to untangle the defunct investment company’s financial accounts to determine what remains to be distributed to MF Global’s stakeholders.  The billions of dollars lost by MF Global on its investments in European sovereign debt left its clients scrambling to salvage any part of MF Global’s assets to recoup their diminished account balances.  But what about the other secured and...

Click here if you missed part one of “Developing a Marketing Budget for 2012.”

How much should I budget for marketing?

This is the big question and one we get a lot. Typically marketing budgets are measured as a percentage of sales. The percentage will vary by industry. Both the Counselors to America's Small Business (SCORE) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) define the variable for a proper marketing budget to be between 2% and 10% of sales, noting that for B2C, retail and...