FINANCIAL FLUENCY FOR FAMILY LAW
Event Framework for Professional Divorce Lawyers

Format: In-person
Duration: 2 hours
Audience: Family law practitioners
Event Positioning: Bridging the gap between legal and financial expertise in family law — practical tools to strengthen outcomes for separating clients.

SESSION 1: READING A P&L AND BALANCE SHEET - Why This Matters for Divorce Lawyers

When lawyers can read and interpret financial statements with confidence, they collaborate more effectively with accountants, identify red flags faster, and provide clients going through separation with a professional team that truly understands the financial context and detail of the divorce. This isn't about replacing accountants — it's about giving lawyers the literacy to support and add greater context to the process, asking better questions and ultimately delivering far more value to clients.

Key Content to Cover

• P&L fundamentals: Revenue vs. profit, cost of goods sold, operating expenses, EBITDA — what to look for and what the numbers are really telling you
• Balance sheet essentials: Assets, liabilities, equity — how they interact and where the hidden story often sits
• Red flags in separation: Suppressed revenue, inflated expenses, unusual director/beneficiary loan movements, sudden changes in financial patterns. It is common to see parties trying to reduce profit and reduce invoicing during divorce — lawyers need to know how to spot this
• Practical exercise: Walk through a simplified set of financials from a separation scenario — what questions should you be asking the accountant?
  
  

SESSION 2: BUSINESS VALUATIONS — INSTRUCTING VALUERS WITH CONFIDENCE

Too often, lawyers from both sides haven't fully understood the business and its value. This leads to unexpected issues, disputed outcomes, and drawn-out settlements. In legal matters like divorce, you need a valuation that is objective, defensible, and handled with sensitivity — but the instruction needs to be right from the start. Know what you're asking for — because the wrong instruction leads to the wrong numbers.

Key Content to Cover

• Entity value vs. business value: This is the critical distinction most lawyers miss. In separation, what's usually needed is an entity value (the total value of the entity being divided), not a standalone business value
• Key person value vs. business goodwill — Understanding the difference between the value of the business itself and the value attributable to the key person. Beneficiary/director loans must be considered when assessing key person value — these are frequently overlooked
• The three valuation methods — Market approach, asset approach, and income approach — and when each is appropriate
• Share sale vs. asset sale implications — Key differences, advantages, and disadvantages that affect how value is distributed in a settlement
• How to instruct a valuer properly — What information to provide, what questions to ask, and what scope of work to request to avoid costly misunderstandings
• Common pitfalls — Real-world examples where incorrect instructions led to disputed valuations, including scenarios where one side claimed "no value" when value clearly existed
  
  

SESSION 3: EDUCATION BONDS — THE GAME-CHANGER IN SEPARATION SETTLEMENTS

This is a tool almost nobody in family law is talking about yet. Education bonds can fundamentally shift the dynamics of a separation settlement by removing ongoing education cost disputes entirely. When an education bond is in place, the education costs are done — no more arguments about who owes the fees, no more friction every term. This has already been implemented in several separations with incredible results, leading to less ongoing conflict and more amicable outcomes. Take education costs off the table and reduce the friction out of separation.

Key Content to Cover

• What is an education bond? A tax-effective investment specifically designed for education expenses. Contributions are invested, and when funds are withdrawn for qualified educational expenses (school fees, university tuition, uniforms, equipment), the tax paid on earnings may be refunded
• Key tax advantages
• How this works in separation
• Practical detail
• Case study walkthrough — Example: A couple investing $100K initial + $1,250/month, growing to approximately $320K over 10 years, covering $150K in private school fees with $170K remaining for future education expenses such as university
• Education bond vs. investment bond:  When to use which, and why education bonds are the targeted tool for separation scenarios.