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It has been a year since the Supreme Court of Georgia addressed the division of goodwill in a professional practice. In Miller v. Miller, 288 Ga. 274 (2010), the Supreme Court provided some clarification regarding dividing goodwill, but also, created some confusion regarding the effect that using the market approach has upon the valuation of the personal goodwill. The court appeared to accept that a key person discount or personal goodwill has already been recognized and adjusted for in the purchase price when a market approach is used.1 The court first recognized that “[V]aluation is an art rather than a science (that)… requires consideration of proof of value by any techniques or methods which are generally acceptable in the financial community and otherwise admissible in court.” 2 After explaining the three principal approaches3 for valuing a business, the court pointed out that there is not a single best approach to valuing a professional association or practice.4
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