In December 2017, Ali Asher, the second-eldest child of Aziz Asher, was conducting research for his father on the best way to restructure the family business to prepare for succession. Asher’s parents and siblings all lived in Canada, while Ali had been running a start-up in India for nearly two years. The family had a real estate and construction business in Vancouver, British Columbia. Ali’s older sister had special needs and lived with her parents, so any family estate plan would need to consider her ongoing care and well-being. His brother, who lived in a suite in the family residence, had a close bond with this sister, worked closely with their father, and had personally invested in one of the family’s main real estate assets. The second sister lived in an apartment in Toronto, which the family had helped her purchase, and had little interest in the family business, though she wished to receive an equitable share of the overall estate. Ali believed that the family business and estate were highly vulnerable to both internal and external forces; he needed to recommend a suitable option for safeguarding the family’s estate and transitioning the family business to the children in a manner that would satisfy both his father’s conditions and the wishes of the other family members.
It was the summer of 2015 when the son of a family-owned real estate business in Vancouver was struck by love and decided to follow his heart to India. However, leaving his family’s business was easier said than done. The family had no formal documents that provided members with an exit strategy or remuneration. There were no wills or financial plans, and whatever money was available to finance a move abroad was tied up in the family business, which was operating at a loss. At stake was the pending sale of a commercial property that could inject nearly $3 million into the family’s coffers. Before leaving, which short- and long-term issues needed to be addressed to ensure the business and the family estate were prepared for the future? How should the family move forward when faced with the realization that the children might not be interested in taking over the business?
JDSU Uniphase Corporation is a high-technology company that designs and manufactures fibre-optic components for the telecommunications and cable television industries. The company announces a record high year-end loss; they contribute the losses primarily to the writedown of goodwill. Using accounting for acquisitions and goodwill, the company must reassess the value of its past acquisitions.
Future Shop is a large retail store chain that specializes in audio, video, computer equipment and software, and appliances. A student group has conducted a research study of Future Shop customers' perception of the strengths and weaknesses of the chain and submitted their findings.