The Lehman Scale is a traditional schedule of business broker

Broker

A broker is a party that arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller, and gets a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal...

and advisers’ chargeable fees. The scale is based on the transaction size of the deal, and is normally payable by the vendor(s) of the business once the purchaser's funds have cleared.

• 5% on the first $1,000,000, plus
• 4% on the second $1,000,000, plus
• 3% on the third $1,000,000, plus
• 2% on the fourth $1,000,000, plus
• 1% on everything above $4,000,000

The Lehman Scale was widely used in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Its popularity has waned recently, mainly because there is little incentive for the adviser to "go the extra mile" in achieving a higher sale value.