Client Responses to Family Conciliation: Achieving Clarity in the Midst of Confusion

Correspondence to Dr. R. Simpson, Family and Community Dispute Research Centre, Claremont Bridge, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU. Summary The present paper deals with one particular issue raised inthe course of a major piece of evaluation research into theeffectiveness of family conciliation in England and Wales. Fromaccounts of clients it became apparent that many of them wereexperiencing some confusion and misunderstanding regarding theprocesses they were undergoing. These confusions are describedand their implications for conciliation and the divorce processin general are discussed. The paper concludes with some suggestionsas to how this confusion may be minimized through the developmentof a broad-based and independent agency offering a comprehensiverange of services for those experiencing difficulties arisingfrom the break-down of an established relationship.     

INVESTMENT STRATEGY FOR A SMALL GROWTH COMPANY*

The purpose of this article is to illustrate the impact of the simultaneous investment-financing decisions required by a small growth company when accepting relatively large investment projects. By such illustration, the capital budgeting rationale for using “rules of thumb” will be clarified, and correspondingly, the implicit assumptions for approximating a company's “cost of capital” will be exposed. To provide quantitative estimates of the various impacts of different capital budgeting strategies, a relatively simple simulation model was constructed. Once the implicit assumptions are exposed, the importance of a strategy combining the rules of thumb and cost of capital criteria is evident. It is believed that this combined strategy provides a practical bridge between the “art” and science of finance.