Category Archives: The Personal Side

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Mercer’s Musings #1: USPAP and the Internal Revenue Service

Many years ago, I wrote a column for the Business Valuation Review that the editor, Jay Fishman, FASA, called “Mercer’s Musings.” In this blog and with this post, I reintroduce “Mercer’s Musings” because I would like to reflect on a number of seemingly unsettled issues in the business valuation world. This first musing relates to the need (or not) to comply with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice promulgated by The Appraisal Foundation in gift and estate tax appraisals prepared for the Internal Revenue Service.

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3 1/2 Years, 182 Weeks, and 1,278 Days of Walking

And, of course, Pickleball!

Three and one-half years ago, I started a walking journey that continues through today. This post talks a bit about that journey, which has included playing pickleball as an essential part, and the impact it has had on me. At the end, it offers a way to think about starting a walking program of your own.

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Silicon Valley Bank’s Failure: Lessons for Private Business Owners and Directors

The failure of Silicon Valley Bank will be talked about for years. What really happened? What caused SVB to fail? Was it just the long-term Treasury securities that everyone has talked about? Well, no. SVB was on a self-imposed path to destruction that had been waiting for an adverse change in the economy or a rising interest rate environment to kick it into oblivion.

There are, indeed, lessons for family business directors from the failure of Silicon Valley Bank. In this week’s post, I discuss four.

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A Change in Walking Goals: Weekly or Daily?

For years I have set a daily goal of walking five miles per day that has set me up for occasional “failure.” I have recently reset the the goal to 35 miles per week. This subtle change has no impact on my overall walking, but makes for more satisfying weeks, even if I fall short for a day. I can almost always reach the weekly goal now that I’m focused on it.

If you are walking with a daily goal, consider changing that goal to a weekly goal. And if you are thinking about starting a walking program, think about setting your initial goal on a weekly basis. We all want to “succeed” in reaching our goals, and this subtle change – from daily to weekly – helps assure ongoing success.

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Another Post on Walking

Today marks the 1,175th day of a walking program that began well more than three years ago. I thought I would miss my 5 mile goal yesterday because of a lower back issue, but somehow worked through it. It would have stopped a 258 day streak. I am so grateful to be able to move regularly, and encourage all to do the same – at whatever activity seems appropriate.

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December 15, 2019 to December 14, 2022: Three Years of Walking

Three years ago, on December 15, 2019, I began a journey and did not know where it would lead.  I began walking daily at the rate of at least five miles per day.  December 14, 2022, marks the end of three years.  December 15, 2022, will be the three-year anniversary. Over this period of time, walking has progressed from something I wanted to do to something that I just do.

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Concluded Marketability Discounts in Statutory Fair Value Cases in New York

By the Numbers

This is the fourth and likely last in a series of posts on Friedman v. Beway, and a couple of other cases on statutory fair value in New York. In this post, we examine the concluded marketability discounts in 32 New York fair value cases since about 1985. When we look at the numbers, New York courts appear to be trending to conclusions of marketability discounts at or near 0%. There are, however, a small number of exceptions to this conclusion which we discuss in the post.