Our Practice is frequently involved in divorce proceedings where valuing private companies becomes a considerable issue.  It is often the case that the parties have appointed their own respective experts to carry out a valuation and they come up with different figures.  As Mr Justice Moylan, in H v H [2008] 2 FLR 2092, observed:  ‘The experts agree that the exercise they are engaged in is an art and not a science’.

 Lord Nicholls of Birkenhead, in Miller v Miller, McFarlane v McFarlane [2006] 1 FLR 1186, commented: ‘Valuations are often a matter of opinion, on which experts differ.  A thorough investigation into these differences can be extremely expensive and of doubtful utility’.

Where does that take us?  Well, it is obviously important to have a valuation of each and every asset in a case to properly consider an appropriate distribution of those assets to arrive at a fair outcome and avoid discrimination.  That is still going to involve the usage of accountants.