Weaver Promotes 15 Professionals to Partner

HOUSTON (June 18, 2025) – Weaver, a national accounting and advisory firm, is pleased to announce the promotion of 15 team members to its partnership ranks. Effective June 1, 2025, the new partners are Stephen Arredondo, Sonali Bhakta, Liza Bowersox, Louis Brown, Neil Brown, Dan Brumwell, Filipe Costa, Jacob Eye, Austin Hatley, Brandon Hayes, Prerna Jagada, T.J. Liles-Tims, Kurt Lowery, Vache Ohanessian and Mark Ottosen.

“This class of new partners reflects the strength and depth of talent we continue to build at Weaver,” said CEO and Managing Partner John Mackel. “Their leadership and technical insight strengthen how we deliver practical, high-impact solutions across industries, geographies and service lines. These promotions represent an ongoing investment in our firm’s future and our commitment to meeting the complex needs of our clients.”

Additional information on each partner’s background, including professional affiliations and education, is available via the links below.

Stephen Arredondo, CMI |  Houston, Texas

Partner, State and Local Property Tax

Stephen Arredondo has more than 20 years of experience in state and local tax (SALT), with a focus on property tax matters. He helps clients manage the full property tax cycle, from multistate compliance and exemption identification to valuation, appeals and audit defense. Stephen has worked with taxpayers across a wide range of industries, including commercial real estate, oil and gas (ad valorem), retail, technology, telecommunications, manufacturing and distribution, industrial, chemical, agriculture, financial services, health care and hospitality. He also supports clients with litigation matters and due diligence related to property tax planning and risk management.

 

Sonali Bhakta, CPA |  Dallas, Texas

Partner, Audit – Energy

Sonali Bhakta has 12 years of audit experience supporting complex issues specifically in technology and oil and gas industries with additional experience in employee benefit plan audits and government audits. Within the Audit practice, she reviews financial statements, provides guidance on complex accounting issues and works proactively to meet client and compliance deadlines. Sonali’s client experience extends from privately held companies to public companies, and she regularly supports clients with financial statement audits, financial statement reviews, compilations and agreed-upon procedures. She has been an integral player within our India teams, supporting their involvement with audit over the past three years.

 

Liza Bowersox, ASA |  Virtual

Partner, Valuation Services

Liza Bowersox has more than 23 years of experience in business valuation, providing support to clients across a wide range of industries. Her work includes valuation opinions for estate and gift tax planning, shareholder transactions, mergers and acquisitions, executive compensation, investor due diligence and financial reporting under ASC 350, 805, 718 and 820. Her experience also extends to the valuation of complex financial instruments for financial reporting and litigation purposes. She has testified in federal court on matters involving lost profits and economic damages.

 

Louis Brown, CPA, PFS |  Fort Worth, Texas

Partner, Tax – Private Client Services

Louis Brown has more than 20 years of tax advisory experience focusing on tax-efficient strategies for high-net-worth individuals. His work supports multigenerational wealth preservation and complex estate structures with substantial, diversified holdings. Louis supports tax planning and compliance engagements for individuals, trusts, estates, family limited partnerships, closely held corporations and not-for-profit entities. He works with clients’ attorneys, investment managers and other professional advisors to protect client wealth, reduce potential conflicts and streamline the execution of estate plans.

 

Neil Brown, CPA  |  Austin, Texas

Partner, Tax – Energy

Neil Brown has more than 13 years of public accounting experience with a focus on tax compliance and consulting for upstream oil and gas companies. He works extensively with private equity-backed portfolio companies, advising on complex tax matters related to mergers and acquisitions and other business transactions. His experience includes multistate income tax planning and compliance, as well as tax strategies for royalty funds and other energy-focused entities. He also advises clients on business transactional services across the energy sector.

 

Dan Brumwell, CPA |  Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

Partner, Transaction Advisory Services

Dan Brumwell has more than 10 years of financial accounting experience, with a focus on buy-side and sell-side due diligence and M&A transaction advisory services for clients in manufacturing and distribution, professional services, construction and percentage of completion accounting, and software as a service (SaaS). He works closely with private equity groups, investment banks, business owners and CFOs to lead, coordinate and manage the entire financial due diligence process. Dan advises clients on new platform acquisitions ranging in size from $3 million to $50 million+ EBITDA. He also advises clients in industry roll-ups, divestitures, net working capital analyses and post-merger integration projects, as well as net working capital and earn-out disputes and resolutions.

 

Filipe Costa, PE |  Houston, Texas

Partner, Energy Compliance Services

Filipe Costa has more than 12 years of experience in energy compliance, consulting, audit services and chemical engineering, as well as international experience as an operations engineer focused on waste treatment and final disposal technologies. As a licensed professional chemical engineer, he provides technical compliance and advisory services for biogas and alternative fuel production facilities including renewable natural gas (RNG), biodiesel and other renewable fuels. With experience reaching from Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) verifications to Quality Assurance Plans (QAP), Filipe’s focus also extends to third-party engineering reviews and Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) consulting. He manages fuel pathway validations and annual verifications for U.S. producers under the LCFS regulations while performing technical QAP reviews and engineering assessments for domestic and foreign renewable fuel facilities under the RFS regulations.

 

Jacob Eye, CPA |  Dallas, Texas

Partner, Audit – Commercial

Jacob Eye has more than 14 years of experience in public accounting, focusing on assurance services for privately held businesses and publicly traded companies. He has worked with clients in a variety of industries including manufacturing, distribution and retail, technology and professional services. Throughout his career, Jacob has served family-owned and private-equity-held portfolio companies — from start-ups to mature companies — through growth, mergers and exit transactions. He regularly supports clients with financial statement audits, financial statement reviews, fund audits and agreed-upon procedures.

 

Austin Hatley, CPA |  Houston, Texas

Partner, Accounting Advisory Services

Austin Hatley has more than 12 years of public accounting experience with a focus on technical accounting for complex, nonroutine transactions. He advises both private equity-backed and publicly held companies on business combinations, consolidations, revenue recognition, lease accounting, stock-based compensation and financial instruments. His work often supports clients through transaction-related accounting, financial reporting readiness and the implementation of new standards. He also assists CFOs and controllers with accounting process improvements, internal control design and financial close acceleration.

 

Brandon Hayes, CMI |  Dallas, Texas

Partner, State and Local Sales and Use Tax

Brandon Hayes has more than 24 years of experience in state and local tax (SALT) matters. His work primarily helps clients navigate SALT-specific nuances through taxability consulting, nexus analyses, voluntary disclosure agreements and compliance. He also concentrates on process improvements, sales and use tax recovery, audit defense and dispute resolutions. With experience across a wide range of industries, Brandon’s domestic and international clients extend to construction, energy, hospitality, manufacturing and distribution, health care, retail and technology companies.

 

Prerna Jagada, CPA |  Dallas, Texas

Partner, Tax – Private Client Services

Prerna Jagada has more than 25 years of public accounting experience, including tax compliance and planning for high-net-worth individuals and not-for-profit organizations. She leads Weaver’s not-for-profit tax practice and has experience with complex issues related to public charities and private foundations. Throughout her career, Prerna has assisted clients with choice and termination of charitable entities and integrated charitable goals with tax planning for high-net-worth individuals. She serves multigenerational families, entrepreneurs, self-employed professionals, founders and executives, and has successfully represented clients in federal and state controversies.

 

T.J. Liles-Tims, CVA, CFE, MAFF |  Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Partner, Forensics and Litigation Services

T.J. Liles-Tims has over 20 years of experience in business valuations, fraud examination and quantifying commercial damages. His work has primarily focused on valuation and commercial disputes in civil litigation, as well as valuation disputes related to gift and estate tax matters. T.J. has provided expert testimony in both federal and state courts as well as in arbitration proceedings. His experience in financial forensics includes litigation, detection and quantification of various forms of financial fraud, divorce-related matters, embezzlement, and criminal and tax fraud.

 

Kurt Lowery, CPA |  Dallas, Texas

Partner, Tax – Energy

Kurt Lowery has more than 12 years of public accounting experience with a focus on federal and state tax compliance and consulting for partnerships, S corporations and limited liability companies. He has worked extensively with private equity-backed portfolio companies, particularly in the energy sector. Kurt’s industry experience includes upstream, midstream and renewable energy, as well as manufacturing and distribution, commercial real estate and professional services. This experience also extends to corporate, individual and state and local income tax matters.

 

Vache Ohanessian, CPA |  Pasadena, California

Partner, Audit – Financial Services

Vache Ohanessian has more than 12 years of experience in the financial services industry with a focus on audits for private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, fund of funds and real estate. His background includes managing financial reporting for a broad range of fund structures, including credit-focused private equity and fixed-income strategies. Vache has also supported fund operations and oversight for large and complex investment platforms. He brings a deep understanding of fund accounting, financial reporting and operational best practices across the asset management life cycle.

 

Mark Ottosen, CPA |  New York City, New York

Partner, Audit – Financial Services

Mark Ottosen has more than 12 years of public accounting experience with investment funds, providing audit and attest services. His clients range from emerging managers to global advisors. With experience in both GAAP and IFRS reporting, Mark’s industry experience reaches across private equity funds, hedge funds, venture capital funds and management companies. Throughout his career, he has worked closely with asset management clients to assess compliance risks, identify potential issues and implement corrective actions.