From the Inside Flap
A Quantitative Approach to Commercial Damages Applying Statistics to the Measurement of Lost Profits
There was a fire. The damages are extensive, and the restaurant will be closed for at least two months. It's your job to calculate the recoverable economic losses, whether stream of lost profits or lost value of the business. The problem is you're not entirely up to speed on the most sophisticated and flexible statistical techniques and tools currently available. Written for practitioners who have some experience in the field of calculating economic damages but who need new tools, A Quantitative Approach to Commercial Damages provides an introduction and a "how to" of some basic statistical techniques to help you establish a precise lost profits analysis.
Demonstrating the application of the various statistical forecasting and analytical models, authors Mark Filler and James DiGabriele--leading forensic and valuation experts--present selected statistical techniques you can apply in lost profits cases. You'll discover new ways to integrate computing power and spreadsheets--especially in Excel and its add-in statistical tools--to quickly simplify complex financial calculations in preparing cases.
Sixteen real-world case studies show you how to:
- Use the standard deviation to determine if a number falls within an expected range based on past performance
- Test the sales history of the XYZ Motel to determine if there is an upward trend in the data
- Forecast expected sales during the period of restoration using a time series regression model
- Compare pre- and post-incident sales and demonstrate techniques
- Determine saved expenses and the issue of statistical significance vs. practical significance
- Apply forensic accounting principles to a lost profits case
- Analyze historical sales data searching for trend and seasonality
A companion website contains all the spreadsheets for the case studies. You can either create the spreadsheets from scratch, following the instructions contained in each chapter and using the website spreadsheets as guidelines, or simply download them from the website and start your own analysis immediately.
Don't underestimate the value of your business loss. Get the tools to compute precise lost profits with A Quantitative Approach to Commercial Damages.
MARK G. FILLER, CPA/ABV, CBA, AM, CVA, is President of Filler & Associates, a valuation and litigation support practice. He recently was also chair of the editorial board of NACVA's The Valuation Examiner and coauthor of NACVA's quarterly marketing newsletter Insights on Valuation. Filler has published various articles and is recognized as a qualified expert witness, testifying frequently on business valuation, commercial damages, and personal injury matters at depositions and in state and federal courts.
JAMES A. DIGABRIELE, PHD/DPS, CPA/ABV, CFF, CFE, CFSA, CR.FA, CVA, is a professor of accounting at Montclair State University and has been published in various journals, including Journal of Forensic Accounting, Journal of Business Valuation and Economic Loss Analysis, and The Value Examiner. Dr. DiGabriele is also Managing Director of DiGabriele, McNulty, Campanella & Co., LLC, an accounting firm specializing in forensic/investigative accounting and litigation support.
