For individuals
If a business is part of your separation, the value placed on it matters to both of you. We do not take sides. We work out a supportable value from the evidence and explain it in plain language, so you know what the business is worth, how that figure was reached and what happens next.
Separation is difficult enough without a number that nobody can explain. Our role is to determine a supportable value from the available evidence, not to produce the highest or lowest figure for either party. That is true whether you own the business, your former partner owns it, or you own it together.
The report is written for both of you and for your advisers. Every adjustment, assumption and conclusion in it can be traced back to the documents and the reasoning, so it can be read, questioned and tested. You may not like the figure. You will understand it, and so will the other side.
For private negotiations, mediation and property-settlement discussions. The Settlement Valuation is prepared for negotiation and mediation purposes. It is not prepared for filing or reliance as expert evidence in court. About the Settlement Valuation.
For matters that need an expert report for court. Subject to conflict checking, scope review, suitable instructions and expert acceptance. Court attendance and additional expert work are priced separately. About the Family Law Expert Valuation.
All fees exclude GST. If you first obtain a Settlement Valuation and later require a Family Law Expert Valuation, the full $2,495 + GST settlement fee will be credited when you upgrade within three months. You pay only the $2,000 + GST difference. See the fees page for what each includes and what is charged separately.
You do not need everything before you enquire. Once the scope is confirmed we send a checklist, which generally covers:
Please do not send affidavits, court documents, personal correspondence or medical or other personal evidence until we have completed the conflict check and asked for them. More on the documents needed.
If your matter is before the Court, or your lawyer expects it will be, the value of the business may need to be established by expert evidence. In that case the Settlement Valuation is not the right tool, because it is not prepared for filing or reliance as expert evidence in court. Your lawyer may recommend a Family Law Expert Valuation. In many matters the parties agree, or the Court orders, that one expert will value the business for both sides. Whether that applies to your matter is for your lawyer to advise.
If you have already had a Settlement Valuation: If you first obtain a Settlement Valuation and later require a Family Law Expert Valuation, the full $2,495 + GST settlement fee will be credited when you upgrade within three months. You pay only the $2,000 + GST difference.
Step by step
The confidential enquiry asks about the business, how it is owned, what the valuation is for and where things stand. It also asks for your former partner's name and their solicitor, if they have one, so that we can check for conflicts before anything else. Submitting it does not commit you to anything.
We tell you whether the Settlement Valuation fits, or whether your matter needs an expert report for court. For a Settlement Valuation the fee is fixed at $2,495 + GST and the engagement letter records what will be valued and at what date. Nothing is charged until you accept it.
We send a checklist and confirm how to provide the documents. Business documents only: financial statements, tax returns, management accounts and the documents that show who owns what. If you do not have something, tell us; your lawyer can advise on how to obtain documents held by the other party.
We analyse the business and value the interest. You receive a draft to check for factual errors, then the signed final report. Settlement Valuation: Draft report within 5 to 7 business days after receiving payment and all required information.
Being clear
It helps to be clear about the limits of our role.
We are a valuation practice, not a law firm. How the property pool is divided, what you should accept and how your matter should be run are questions for your lawyer.
You cannot instruct us to arrive at a particular figure, and neither can the other party. The value is what the evidence supports.
We do not negotiate for you, argue your case or advocate for one side. Our independence is what makes the report useful to you.
The valuation relies on the documents provided. Where something is missing, the report says so. We cannot investigate hidden assets or income; that is forensic work, which is separately scoped where it is needed.
We value the business or ownership interest. The home, superannuation, vehicles and personal assets are dealt with separately.
The value of the business is one input into the settlement. How it is divided depends on matters outside the valuation, and your lawyer will advise on that.
Your questions
Yes. Either party can instruct a Settlement Valuation, and it is often instructed jointly so that both sides receive the same report. If you do not have access to the business documents, your lawyer can advise on how they are obtained. The report values the business from the documents provided and says clearly where anything is missing.
The valuation is used by both parties, and it is prepared the same way whoever instructs it. It takes into account the things owners often feel are overlooked: what you actually earn for the work you do, how much of the business depends on you personally, the debt, and the working capital the business needs. It also takes into account the things the other party may feel are overlooked, such as private expenses paid through the business. A reasoned figure that both sides can test tends to shorten the argument rather than lengthen it.
Not for a Settlement Valuation. You can instruct us directly, and many people do. We still recommend that you have a lawyer advise you on your settlement, because the value of the business is only one part of it, and questions about how the pool is divided are legal questions we cannot answer. Where a report is needed for court, it proceeds on instructions, usually through the lawyers.
Then the report will say so and show why. Owners are often surprised to find that a business which provides a good income has limited value to a purchaser, because the income depends on them. Others are surprised the other way. The figure is what the evidence supports; what you do with it is a matter for you and your lawyer.
Not unless you authorise it or the valuation is jointly instructed. In a joint instruction we correspond with both sides equally. In a single-party instruction we deal with you and, where you authorise it, your lawyer or accountant, and we do not contact the other party.
That is a legal question, and your lawyer will advise on it. The report tells you what the business, or the interest in it, is worth. How that value is divided between you depends on matters outside the valuation.
Yes. Every enquiry is treated as confidential from the moment it arrives, and the conflict check is completed before your matter is discussed in detail. We do not contact anyone you have not authorised. Our privacy policy sets out how your information is handled.
Business documents only at first: financial statements and tax returns for recent years, current management accounts, and the documents that show who owns what, such as a company extract, trust deed or partnership agreement. We send a checklist once the scope is confirmed. Please do not send affidavits, court documents, personal correspondence, medical records or other personal evidence until we have completed the conflict check and asked for them.
You can tell us what you expect and why, and that context can be useful. It does not change the method or the conclusion. A valuation that is steered towards a preferred figure is of no use in a negotiation and of no use to a court, because the other side will test it. What you receive is a reasoned figure with the working shown.
Complete the confidential enquiry and choose "Not sure" for the service. Tell us whether the matter is before the Court, whether a single expert has been agreed or ordered, and what the valuation will be used for. We complete an initial conflict and scope assessment and tell you which service fits, or that a quotation is needed, before anything begins. Submission of the form does not create an engagement.
Tell us about the business and what the valuation is for. We confirm the scope and the fee before anything begins. Or call 0433 475 518 or request a call back. Phone hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday (Sydney time).
Submission of the enquiry form does not create an engagement.