DEFINITIONS ATTRIBUTED TO GOODWILL IN THE ECONOMIC LITERATURE AND CONCEPTUAL DELIMITATIONS REGARDING THE WAY OF VALUATION AND EXPOSURE OF THIS PATRIMONIAL COMPONENT IN THE BALANCE SHEET

The purpose of this paper is to provide an exhaustive perspective on the evolution over time of the definition of the goodwill. The present paper is part of the research done in the doctoral thesis and we consider it very important to have a complete understanding of the concept studied to develop it further. In our demersal we used a chronological analysis and we revised definitions from the late 1800s to today. At the same time, it is desired to clarify and analyze the concept of goodwill both from the point of view of the accounting literature and the economic practice (regarding the evaluation and exposure of this patrimonial component in the balance sheet) and to a lesser extent in the legal aspect. Definitions are given by prominent researchers of time, published in magazines and books of a high rank or offered by international accounting commissions. In our opinion, this study is beneficial to researchers in the idea that it offers a complete picture of its concept and history, being a study focusing on the international accounting of goodwill in the past, present and future. In Romania, goodwill is treated as an asset, but does the market perceive goodwill in the same way as it sees other assets? To clarify this question, this paper first looks at the perception of the goodwill market as an asset in determining an entity's valuation.