Title: Personal vs. Enterprise Goodwill in Divorce Across Various States
Date: November 19, 2026
Time: 10:00am - 11:15am (PST)
11:00am - 12:15pm (MST)
12:00pm - 1:15pm (CST)
1:00pm - 2:15pm (EST)
Cost: Complimentary
CLE/CPE Credit: This webinar has been approved for CLE and CPE credit. Click here for current state CLE approvals and pending applications; this information will be updated as additional approvals are received.
Presenters: Karolina Calhoun, CPA, ABV, CFF (Mercer Capital) and Aaron Bundy (Bundy)
Course Overview and Purpose
This webinar offers an in‑depth discussion of personal and enterprise goodwill from a valuation and legal perspective, with practical frameworks, valuation methodologies, case law, and examples.
This webinar will provide an in-depth examination of personal and enterprise goodwill from a national valuation expert’s perspective and that of a board-certified family lawyer and fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) and International Academy of Family Lawyers (IAFL).
In divorce, personal goodwill can potentially be carved out of the marital estate as a separate asset, making this topic not only important, but also one that comes with complexities. As a result, this has become a bit of a “battleground” area in the valuations for divorce.
Personal goodwill differs from enterprise goodwill in that personal goodwill typically represents that value stemming from an individual and is an asset owned by the individual, not the business itself. This typically stems from an individual’s professional reputation, personal relationships with customers or suppliers, technical expertise, or other distinctly personal abilities, which provide economic benefit to a business. However, what if the relationships or other attributes of personal goodwill can be transferred? How does this impact the allocation to personal goodwill? There are many more nuances as well.
The webinar will cover valuation methodologies used to calculate personal and enterprise goodwill and will examine how and where personal goodwill is potentially also considered within a business valuation, noting tips for cautionary considerations of areas of potential double counting risk.
Attendees will review a handful of court rulings, and case studies will be used throughout the course to illustrate key principles and valuation approaches, from both valuation and legal perspectives. For more information, see the Course Outline below.
Course Outline
Components of Business Value and Goodwill
Tangible - Net Asset Value
Intangibles and Goodwill
Intangibles May Be Separated into Sub-categories
Identified Intangibles Reduce the Value of Personal and Enterprise Goodwill
In Plain Language: Goodwill = Price/Value - Tangible NAV - Identifiable Intangible Assets
Personal Goodwill vs. Enterprise Goodwill
Personal Goodwill Driven by Personal Reputation/Continued Presence
Transferable & Non-Transferable | Unique vs. Replaceable/Saleable
Transferable Personal Goodwill according to other state supreme court case law is part of the marital estate, thereby only that which is pure personal goodwill is excluded (McReath)
Enterprise Goodwill Driven by Brandname, Software, Assembled Workforce, Assembled Operations, Etc.
Case Law & Legal Perspective
Relevant Case Law
Technical Section
Methods of Determining Enterprise and Personal Goodwill
Must Enterprise and Personal Goodwill Be Considered in All Valuations After Statutory Changes?
Issue/Consideration on Personal Goodwill Already Considered in the Valuation - Double-count, Triple-count
High-Level View of Personal Goodwill
Illustrative Examples with Varying Fact Patterns
Illustration of Areas Where Personal Goodwill / Key-Person / Replacement / Transferability Can Be Factored into the Valuation of the Business and/or the Subject Interest
Is Personal Goodwill Factored into Income or Is It Not?
Is it Income or an Asset of a Sole Practitioner?
Size of Company (# of Owners) and How it Could Affect Personal Goodwill: Larger, More Employees vs. Small - (One Practitioner) - Income or Asset? Can it Be Both?
Personal Goodwill: Beyond Business Valuation
Is Personal Goodwill Related to Active/Passive Analysis?
Factors to Consider
Which One to Choose?
Facts and Circumstances Vary - "It Depends"
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this webinar, participants will be able to:
Identify the circumstances and reasons for determining goodwill between personal and enterprise.
Recognize factors of personal vs. enterprise goodwill and differentiate goodwill from other intangibles.
Apply the various methods used to calculate personal and enterprise goodwill.
Analyze legal perspective and case law in a handful of states and examine how comparability must be considered among varying matters, fact and circumstances.
Presenters
Karolina Calhoun, CPA, ABV, CFF
Karolina Calhoun, CPA, ABV, CFF is a Senior Vice President with Mercer Capital. She specializes in valuation, financial forensics, M&A advisory, forensic accounting, damages, and further business and commercial litigation in a diverse range of industries on local, national, and international levels.
Karolina serves as an expert witness for complex financial matters related to valuation, lost profits, IP, shareholder disputes, damages, business litigation, commercial litigation, marital dissolution, and further matters requiring financial, valuation, and/or forensic accounting expertise. Karolina has testified over 30 times in local & national matters and has been appointed by various courts as a court-appointed expert in both valuation and forensics.
Karolina served as the 2020 and the 2021 Valuation Chair of the AICPA’s Forensic and Valuation Services Conference, of which she also served on the planning committee for many years. She also served on the AICPA’s CFF Exam Writing Task Force. She is a past President of the Memphis Chapter of Tennessee Society of CPAs. In 2018, she received the Forensic and Valuation Services (FVS) Standing Ovation Award, presented by the AICPA to professionals for significant contributions in their specialty areas and in their communities. Currently, she is a member of the AICPA Business Valuations Committee and the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) Foundation: Forensic and Business Valuation Division. Karolina is a frequent speaker on various valuation and forensic topics to attorneys, accountants, and business professionals.
Aaron Bundy advises and represents individuals in family law and other matters, ranging from personal planning and strategy to courtroom advocacy. He has served as lead counsel in hundreds of domestic relations cases, many of which were resolved at trial, and on multiple complex appellate matters.
Aaron is board-certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy for family law trial work. He has served in many leadership roles, including as an Associate Editor of the Oklahoma Bar Journal, Chair of the Trial Practices committee of the American Bar Association’s Family Law Section, and President of the Oklahoma chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.
A fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and the International Academy of Family Lawyers, he is ranked in Band 1 of the Chambers High Net Worth Family/Matrimonial guide and one of eight U.S. lawyers with the “Top Recommended” designation in the Spear's 500 Family Lawyers index.
Aaron is licensed to practice law in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, New York, and the District of Columbia.
This Webinar Has Been Approved for CLE and CPE Credit
CLICK HERE FOR CLE & CPE INFORMATION