What is NOT a characteristic of the purchase of assets in a business combination?

In a business combination, one of the key attributes is that the transaction typically encompasses the acquisition of a company's net assets, including both assets and liabilities, rather than solely the net assets alone. The correct answer highlights that shareholder approval is not mandatory in all scenarios.

In such combinations, the purchasing entity may acquire the target company's assets and assume its liabilities, which can significantly impact the purchase price. Therefore, option C asserts that while shareholder approval may be required in certain transactions, it is not universally applicable across all asset purchases in business combinations.

The other characteristics mentioned relate directly to the nature of asset acquisitions in these scenarios. The presence of liabilities in the purchase price indicates that the buyer assumes certain obligations, while defining the scope of what is acquired is essential to understanding the total cost of the transaction. Meanwhile, calculating goodwill, arising from the excess of purchase price over the fair value of net identifiable assets, reflects the importance of recognizing intangible value in such acquisitions. All of these aspects work together to define the characteristics of asset purchases within a business combination, making the assertion regarding shareholder approval as the outlier in this context.