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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

4th Annual CPA-Auto Dealership Niche Conference

Franchise Valuation Strategies, Computer Technology Updates Head Topics at De Filipps CPA-Auto Dealers Conference, June 18-20

March 12, 2001 -- 

        DALLAS—Valuation strategies for dealing with dealership phaseouts and information on how to weather many other changes in dealer-factory relations are among hot topics leading experts will address at the fourth annual De Filipps CPA-Auto Dealership Niche Conference.  The Conference will be held June 18-20 at the Westin~Galleria, 13340 Dallas Parkway, Dallas.

        “We have added a module of computer technology updates to this year’s Conference and increased opportunities for interactive question and answer sessions, both in response to participant suggestions,” said Willard J. De Filipps, CPA, Conference Chair.  “Our top-rated faculty of industry and government experts will cover every aspect of financial management for auto dealers.”

        Opening speakers are Daniel E. Myers, Tallahassee, FL, Mark D. Schmitz, Park City, UT, and James L. “Butch” Williams, CPA, CVA, CBA, Birmingham, AL.

        Myers is an attorney specializing in automobile franchising, credited by The Wall Street Journal with “transforming the dealer backlash against manufacturer ownership from a series of isolated state maneuvers into a national campaign.” He is widely known for his work representing adversely affected dealers in “open point” cases, dealership relocations, dealership terminations, buy-sells, factory audits, and rejections of dealership transfers.

        Schmitz, a Ph.D. and authority on dealership valuation, is nationally recognized for his expert testimony on estate plans, buy-sells, public offerings, divorces and litigation between dealers, banks and manufacturers.  A noted National Automobile Dealers Association workshop presenter, his engaging presentation style makes Schmitz consistently one of the industry’s highest rated speakers.

        Williams, Chair of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ Business Valuations and Appraisals Subcommittee, will add his perspective and experience before joining Myers and Schmitz in an interactive roundtable discussion, “Valuing Dealerships in the Trenches.”

        The special computer technology session on Tuesday morning will feature “Technology Trends in the Automotive Industry,” by Sandi Jerome, Port Angeles, WA; Paul R. MacDonald, Hays, KS, speaking on “Dealership Computer Conversions, Data Processing & Other Security Issues”; and Paul F. Gillrie, Odessa, FL, who has helped dealers negotiate hundreds of deals for computer system purchases and leases. 

        Other speakers, including Internal Revenue Service Motor Vehicle Technical Advisor Terri S. Harris, Grand Rapids, MI, will review latest developments of IRS rulings on its new methodology for making used vehicle LIFO calculations, technician tool rental and reimbursement plans, and other tax issues.   The Service’s new standard method for used vehicle LIFO calculations is almost identical to one the De Filipps firm has been using for many years.

        Another hot topic will be the continuing repercussions of a Tax Court ruling in the Mountain State Ford Truck Sales case disallowing use of the replacement cost method for a dealer’s parts inventories.  “Every dealer in the country uses, and has always been using, a replacement cost method for approximating the cost of parts and accessories inventories.  No dealer has ever computed actual cost for a parts inventory,” De Filipps said.

        Other top industry speakers include John P. Boggs, Half Moon Bay, CA, a leading labor and employment attorney who will speak on dealership pay plans and compensation programs; and John T. McDonald, former General Motors Corporation marketing executive and dealership sales manager and President/GM, will share his recommendations on “Maximizing the Used Vehicle Profit Center.”

        James B. Smith, Albuquerque, NM, will apply his experience as a third-party administrator of producer-owned reinsurance companies to dealership profit opportunities. “The Dynamics of Dealership Restructuring & Rearrangements: Alternatives and Case Studies” will be the topic of Terrell J. Isselhard, a Chicago attorney concentrating in family succession planning,  estate and tax planning for owners of closely held corporations.

        Other Conference topics and speakers include:
        •       “Cost Segregation: Can It Find Buried Treasure?,” John Wilmoth, Sanger, TX.
        •        “Making Sense of the Service Department,” Mark D. Schmitz.
        •       “The New IRS Audit Guide for Dealers & Assorted Other Tax Developments including Used Vehicle LIFO,” Willard J. De Filipps, CPA, Mt. Prospect, IL.

        The Conference sponsor is the firm Willard J. De Filipps, CPA, P.C., Mt. Prospect, IL, publisher of Dealer Tax Watch, a quarterly update of essential tax information for auto dealers and other retailers, and LIFO Lookout, a quarterly newsletter with specialized coverage of LIFO news and developments.  The firm’s founder and the Conference Chair, widely known as “Mr. LIFO,” is recognized as one of the nation’s leading experts in LIFO accounting for auto and truck dealerships.