Fees
Clear fees, confirmed before work begins
Two services, two fee bases. The Settlement Valuation is a fixed fee of $2,995 + GST. The Court Expert Valuation is from $8,995 + GST, with the final fee confirmed in writing after conflict checking and scope review. All fees exclude GST.
Two services, two purposes
A Settlement Valuation ($2,995 + GST, fixed fee) is prepared for negotiation, mediation and property-settlement discussions. A Court Expert Valuation (from $8,995 + GST) is prepared for matters that need an expert report for court. They are different tools for different situations, and the appropriate one depends on where your matter is and what the report will be used for.
For negotiation and mediation
Settlement Valuation
A fixed-fee independent business valuation for private negotiations, mediation and property-settlement discussions.
Fee
$2,995 + GST
Fixed fee, payable in advance.
- $2,995 + GST
- For negotiation and mediation
- Fixed scope
- Written independent report
- Generally completed within seven business days
- Not prepared as court evidence
For court proceedings
Court Expert Valuation
An independent expert report for matters where a valuation is intended for filing or reliance in court.
Fee
from $8,995 + GST
Final fee confirmed in writing after scope and conflict review, payable in advance.
- From $8,995 + GST
- For court proceedings
- Court-compliant expert report
- Subject to instructions and conflict review
- Signing valuer will be a Chartered Accountant
- Additional expert work charged separately
Inclusions
What each fee includes
Settlement Valuation
Fee
$2,995 + GST
Fixed fee, payable in advance.
A fixed fee of $2,995 + GST for one business or ownership interest, valued at one date, from orderly records. The Settlement Valuation is prepared for negotiation and mediation purposes. It is not prepared for filing or reliance as expert evidence in court.
What the fee includes
- Review of the business and ownership structure
- Analysis of financial statements and relevant management accounts
- Normalisation of business earnings
- Consideration of owner remuneration and private or non-recurring expenses
- Selection and explanation of the appropriate valuation methodology
- Consideration of business-specific risks
- Assessment of personal and transferable goodwill where relevant
- Calculation of enterprise value and equity value
- Valuation of the relevant ownership interest
- Written independent valuation report
- A draft for factual review before finalisation
- Generally seven business days after payment and receipt of all required information, subject to complexity.
- Where the enquiry shows a materially different scope, for example several related entities that each need to be valued, we say so at the scope stage and quote before starting.
- Business documents only. The fee does not include reconstructing accounts that were never prepared; if that is needed, we quote it separately before proceeding.
Court Expert Valuation
Fee
from $8,995 + GST
Final fee confirmed in writing after scope and conflict review, payable in advance.
from $8,995 + GST. Engagement is subject to an initial conflict and suitability assessment, review of the proposed instructions and acceptance by the appointed expert. The final scope and fee depend on the business, the entity structure, the quality of the records and the issues in dispute, and are confirmed in writing before work begins.
What the fee may include
Depending on the instructions and the matter:
- Review of formal or joint instructions
- Compliance with applicable expert-witness requirements
- Detailed financial and valuation analysis
- Consideration of competing factual assumptions
- Supporting valuation schedules
- Declaration of independence
- Expert opinion and court-compliant report
- Reasonable written clarification following delivery
- from $8,995 + GST is the starting point for a single business with orderly records and settled instructions.
- The fee rises with the number of entities, the state of the records, the number of competing factual assumptions to be addressed and the issues in dispute.
- The identity of the appointed expert, the scope, the fee and the expected delivery date are confirmed in writing. Nothing beyond the initial assessment is done until the quotation is accepted.
Side by side
| Item | Settlement Valuation | Court Expert Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Fee | $2,995 + GST | from $8,995 + GST |
| Fee basis | Fixed fee | Confirmed in writing after conflict checking and scope review |
| Purpose | For negotiation and mediation | For court proceedings |
| Scope | Fixed scope | Subject to instructions and conflict review |
| Report | Written independent report | Court-compliant expert report |
| Timing | Generally completed within seven business days | Expected delivery date confirmed in the engagement |
| Use in court | Not prepared as court evidence | Prepared for filing or reliance in court; signing valuer will be a chartered accountant |
| Additional work | A materially different scope is quoted before starting | Additional expert work charged separately |
What is charged separately
The following work is not included in the Court Expert Valuation fee. Each item is quoted before it is undertaken:
- Court attendance and cross-examination
- Conferences of experts and joint expert reports
- Supplementary or updated reports
- Forensic accounting work
- Material additional document review
- Responding to questions beyond reasonable written clarification
These items arise only in some matters. Many expert reports are delivered, clarified in writing and relied on without any of them.
How the expert fee is confirmed
Every Court Expert Valuation begins with an initial conflict and suitability assessment. If the matter can be accepted, we review the proposed instructions, or discuss with the instructing lawyers what the report needs to address, and identify the documents required. From that review we can see the entity structure, the state of the records and the issues in dispute, which are what determine the work involved.
We then provide a written quotation stating the scope, the fee, the expected delivery date and the identity of the appointed expert. Work begins only when the quotation is accepted and the instructions are settled. If the scope changes after that, for example because further entities come to light or the instructions are amended, we tell you before doing the additional work and quote it separately.
Moving from a Settlement Valuation to a Court Expert Valuation
In plain terms: the $2,995 + GST fee is not automatically credited against the expert fee. Where the initial work can properly be carried forward, the expert quotation reflects that and unnecessary duplication is avoided. Where it cannot, because the instructions, the valuation date or the assumptions differ, or because the expert needs to do the analysis afresh to be able to stand behind it, the quotation says so. The appointed expert must independently control and verify the opinion, and that is not something a discount can be promised against.
GST and payment
GST
All fees on this site are exclusive of GST. GST is added to each invoice at the applicable rate.
Payment terms
All fees are payable in advance and work begins when payment is received. The Settlement Valuation turnaround runs from the later of payment and receipt of all required information. For a Court Expert Valuation, the quoted fee is payable in advance of the work it covers, and separately scoped work is quoted and paid the same way. Payment details are on the invoice.
Invoicing
Invoices are issued by the entity named in the engagement letter.
Disbursements
To be confirmed: Content to be confirmed
Joint instructions
Where a valuation is instructed jointly, the parties usually agree between themselves, or the Court orders, how the fee is shared. Tell us the arrangement in the enquiry and we will confirm the invoicing approach in the engagement letter.
Invoicing entity: Wellness Pty Ltd
The full terms are in our Terms of Engagement.
FAQs
Fee questions
Is the Settlement Valuation fee really fixed?
Yes, for the scope described: one business or ownership interest, valued at one date, from orderly records. If the enquiry shows something materially different, such as several related entities that each need valuing, we say so at the scope stage and quote before starting. You will not be asked for more after the work has begun.
Why is the Court Expert Valuation priced "from" rather than fixed?
Because the work required for an expert report varies with the matter. The final scope and fee depend on the business, the entity structure, the quality of the records and the issues in dispute, and are confirmed in writing after conflict checking and scope review, before any work begins. The starting point for a single business with orderly records is from $8,995 + GST. Work such as court attendance and cross-examination, conferences of experts and joint expert reports, supplementary or updated reports is scoped and charged separately.
What could increase the expert fee?
The number of entities to be valued, records that need reconstruction or reconciliation, competing factual assumptions that each require a separate analysis, forensic questions such as tracing transactions, and additional material supplied after the report is under way. Each of these is identified at scope review where it can be seen, and quoted before the work is done where it arises later.
Is the Settlement Valuation fee credited if I move to an expert report?
Not automatically. If your matter later requires an expert report for court, we will assess whether the initial work can be carried forward and provide a separate quotation before proceeding. The appointed expert must independently review the material and may require further information or analysis. Where the initial work can properly be carried forward, the expert quotation reflects that. The appointed expert must independently review the material and form their own opinion, so a full credit cannot be promised.
Do the fees include GST?
No. All fees on this site are exclusive of GST, which is added to each invoice at the applicable rate.
Who pays when a single expert is appointed?
That is set by the agreement between the parties or by the Court's orders, and your lawyer will advise on what applies. Commonly the parties share the fee, but the arrangement varies. Tell us what has been agreed or ordered in the enquiry and we will confirm the invoicing approach in the engagement letter.
Are there any other costs?
Nothing outside the engagement letter. For a Settlement Valuation, the fixed fee is the fee. For a Court Expert Valuation, the written quotation states the report fee, and the items listed under "What is charged separately" are quoted individually if and when they arise. To be confirmed: disbursement and travel policy
Is there a charge for the initial enquiry and scope review?
To be confirmed: Content to be confirmed
I do not know which service I need. What should I do?
Complete the confidential enquiry and choose "Not sure" for the service. Tell us whether the matter is before the Court, whether a single expert has been agreed or ordered, and what the valuation will be used for. We complete an initial conflict and scope assessment and tell you which service fits, or that a quotation is needed, before anything begins. Submission of the form does not create an engagement.
Fees
Choose the service that fits the matter
Not sure which applies? Tell us about the matter and we will confirm the appropriate scope before anything begins.
Submission of the enquiry form does not create an engagement.