Starling v. Starling, 2013 Va. App. LEXIS 248 (Sept. 10, 2013) (slip op.) Because the trial court found neither spouse’s expert offered a convincing valuation for a family business, it opted to adopt the liquidation value the company’s CPA proposed. On appeal, the husband contested both the trial court’s classification of the business as hybrid  Continue Reading »

Business owners routinely evaluate opportunities to reduce expenses. However, many organizations are unaware of the savings that can result from a business energy audit. Many of the savings from an energy audit are sustainable, and usually they are well received by employees and customers. Even better, your company may qualify for tax breaks for making  Continue Reading »

Incentive stock options offer tax advantages to employees, but they come with a tax price for your Maine-based company. The plan must meet numerous strict requirements spelled out in the law, and the company gets no deduction at any time. To receive preferential capital gain treatment, option holders must retain the stock at least two  Continue Reading »

If you run your Maine-based business operations through two or more corporations, the different entities may share some of the same employees. If so, you may be able to save payroll taxes by using a common paymaster. This means that instead of having each business pay Social Security and Medicare tax for shared employees, the  Continue Reading »

Towerview LLC v. Cox Radio, Inc., 2013 Del. Ch. LEXIS 139 (June 28, 2013) Five years after the 2008 economic meltdown, observers look back with a good deal of hindsight. But when the Delaware Court of Chancery recently assessed the reliability of prerecession management projections for its discounted cash flow analysis (DCF), hindsight is precisely  Continue Reading »

If your Maine-based small business has customers that don’t pay their bills, there could be a last resort: You can deduct a bad business debt in the year it becomes worthless, as long as you’ve tried everything to collect. In order to get the write-off, you have to prove that the debt will not be paid.  Continue Reading »

Marine Travelift, Inc. v. Marine Lift Systems, Inc., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91268 (June 28, 2013) Valuation experts often build on someone else’s assumptions to make reliable calculations. But can an expert simply evaluate and validate information from others without testing the underlying assumptions or doing an independent analysis? A recent lost profits case illustrates.  Continue Reading »

A “working condition fringe benefit” is tax-free to your employees and deductible by your Maine-based company. To qualify for this tax-favored treatment, however, the expense must be “ordinary and reasonable” under the circumstances. In addition, if the benefit involves recreation, amusement or entertainment, the expense must be directly related to, or associated with, your small  Continue Reading »

In today’s economic environment, one major concern for many businesses, in Maine and everywhere, is maintaining a healthy cash flow. If your small business is feeling the pinch of a tight economy, and tight credit, its ability to manage cash flow is critical. Enterprises that successfully practice good cash management generally survive and prosper. Those  Continue Reading »

These days, anyone looking to form a new business relationship, especially one that involves credit, is wise to check out the risk involved first. After all, we know that even giant companies that once seemed untouchable may be teetering on too narrow a pedestal. With that in mind, various parties might be checking out your Maine-based small business’  Continue Reading »