Business Valuation Loses a Pioneer

By Eva Lang

Business valuation is a relatively small niche in the world of accounting and finance. There are just a few thousand full time practitioners in this area in contrast to more than 300,000 CPAs in the U.S. And there are only a few dozen leaders who write the books, develop the courses, and lead the organizations that mold our profession. Last week, we lost a business valuation leader who did much to advance our profession – James S. Rigby, CPA/ABV, ASA.

Jim most recently served as the co-chair of the Joint AICPA/ASA Business Valuation Conference last November. That was but one of the many positions – official and unofficial – that Jim held. He was very active in the ASA helping with strategic planning, marketing, website, and education efforts of the association. He did extensive volunteer work with the AICPA and was named to the AICPA BV Hall of Fame. He taught valuation courses to hundreds of new people entering our profession and he wrote many articles and papers on valuation topics. He will be missed.