Dr. Estery Gilaz-Ran, CPA
Resolving Complex Financial and Interpersonal Disputes
Succession in Family Businesses · Partner Dispute Mediation · Arbitration by Agreement · Expert Opinions for the Courts
In a family business or a long-standing partnership, a dispute over money is usually also a dispute over trust, recognition and one's place. This is what happens when control passes to the next generation, when shares and assets are divided, when a partner retires or family members join management. An agreement that will last requires understanding both the numbers and what drives each of the parties.
As a CPA with a PhD in accounting, finance and taxation, I bring more than 20 years of experience in strategic management, transactions, corporate governance and expert opinions, together with a deep understanding of the psychology and human dynamics behind conflict.
In mediation, in arbitration by agreement or when guiding a succession process, I lead the parties to clear, workable agreements, grounded in rigorous financial analysis, that protect the value of the business and preserve the relationships between people. With complete confidentiality, in Hebrew and in English.
20+ Years of Experience
Over more than 20 years, I have guided strategic initiatives, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and corporate governance processes. Serving as an external director with financial expertise at Mizrahi Tefahot Bank and on the boards of public and private companies has given me first-hand familiarity with decision-making at the most senior level and with the most complex business dynamics.
As a CPA with a PhD in accounting, finance and taxation, who has served as head of an accounting department and published international research, I have accumulated some 15 years of experience as a court-appointed expert, providing in-depth analysis of valuation, tax and ownership issues.
Behind every balance sheet there are people. That is why, in mediation, arbitration and succession processes, I also decode what lies beneath the surface: unspoken expectations, fears and patterns that recur in families and partnerships. This is how solutions are built that protect the value of the business and keep relationships intact.
My Commitment and Core Values
Uncompromising pursuit of the financial truth
Every fair resolution rests on a clear picture of reality: the ability to dive deep into the financial statements, unpack their distortions and reveal the true economic value of companies and assets, with the methodological precision of an expert in accounting and finance.
Protecting the human and family bond
Businesses can be rebuilt; a family and a personal reputation trampled in court are very hard to repair. I manage the process with the utmost sensitivity, complete confidentiality and respect for the shared history, so that the financial agreement preserves the dignity and future of everyone involved.
Integrity and professional courage
Resolving disputes requires reflecting reality with courage. I do not embellish figures and I do not shy away from raising blind spots. I present the parties with the full picture, even when it is challenging, out of a deep commitment to a workable settlement.
Airtight agreements and a multi-generational view
A good agreement is one that stands the test of time. Drawing on deep knowledge of corporate law, taxation and corporate governance, I build mechanisms and frameworks that prevent the next friction and provide peace of mind and business and family stability for years to come.
Protect what has been built. Resolve the dispute through respect and agreement.
Deep financial expertise, a multi-generational perspective and complete confidentiality — for a resolution that secures the company's future and the relationships behind it.
Professional Services
Dispute resolution, authoritative decision-making and ownership arrangements in family businesses and partnerships — with financial and tax authority, a deep understanding of human dynamics and complete confidentiality.
Dispute resolution, authoritative decision-making and ownership arrangements in family businesses and partnerships — with financial and tax authority, a deep understanding of human dynamics and complete confidentiality.
Mediation in Partner, Control and Shareholder Disputes
When trust has been damaged and the company has reached a deadlock, the process makes it possible to identify the dynamics beneath the surface and build a stable, agreed and sustainable financial framework.
- Breaking a management deadlock: reaching operational and structural agreements that allow the company to keep functioning and growing, and prevent rapid erosion of the business’s value.
- Agreed separation mechanisms: structuring a partner’s exit and buyout — including valuation, payment schedules and BMBY mechanisms — with optimal tax planning and business continuity.
- A safe, respectful space for dialogue: defusing power struggles and past grievances, and translating them into a binding agreement that protects the interests of all parties.
Succession in Family Businesses
Securing the future of the business and keeping the family whole, by combining rigorous financial and tax planning with a deep understanding of human dynamics and generational gaps.
- Structuring ownership and control: designing a framework for transferring shares, rights and assets from the founding generation to the next, with optimal tax planning and prevention of future tax exposure.
- Family charter and defined roles: setting agreed, binding rules for bringing family members into the business, delineating management authority and creating clear decision-making mechanisms.
- Protecting business value and family resilience: easing the founders’ fears of losing control, bridging the gaps in expectations between generations and building business certainty for the generations to come.
Expert Financial and Accounting Opinions for the Courts
A solid, well-reasoned and objective evidentiary and financial foundation, based on some 15 years of court appointments and in-depth academic research.
- Valuations and asset balancing: valuing companies, shares and corporate rights in commercial disputes and asset-rich separation proceedings, including review of control structures and tax aspects.
- Quantifying economic damages: calculating direct and indirect damages, lost profits and harm to goodwill arising from breach of contract, using established methodologies that withstand cross-examination.
- Expert appointments and court testimony: providing expert opinions (court-appointed or on behalf of the parties) in all courts (District, Economic Division, Labor and Family), answering clarification questions and giving evidence-based expert testimony.
Commercial Arbitration and Cross-Border Disputes
A professional, fast and independent decision — a confidential and efficient alternative to years of litigation, in Hebrew and in English.
- Commercial disputes and M&A transactions: deciding complex contractual disputes, derivative claims, valuation gaps and price-adjustment or separation mechanisms following mergers and acquisitions, in Israel and internationally.
- Control struggles and shareholder rights: resolving complex disputes between partners and investors over minority oppression, dividend distribution, voting rights and officers’ liability.
- A reasoned, enforceable arbitral award: a final and binding award, based on rigorous evidentiary, financial and accounting analysis, that can be confirmed and enforced as a court judgment in Israel and in the countries that are party to the New York Convention.
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