ECS Financial Services, Inc., started in 1962, has expanded into a full-service accounting firm that offers so much more than traditional accounting. ECS is driven by their mission to provide clients with world-class services. From the leasing industry, to corporate and individual tax, their clients benefit from a staff of experts who not only listen, but take the time to thoroughly understand their needs and objectives. You get the experience and capability of a large-scale accounting firm, with the personal attention of a small business.
Forensic Accounting & Expert Witness Services - The ECS forensic accounting and expert witness team has the expertise to help with all litigation support needs. ECS professionals include accountants with investigative skills to examine records for possible fraud, identify theft or embezzlement, calculate a potential damage claim, or testify in a legal dispute.
Mitchell M. Cohen, CPA, CFE, FCPA, CFLC, is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) a Forensic Certified Public Accountant (FCPA) and a Certified Forensic Litigation Consultant (CFLC) with over 27 years of accounting and tax experience.
Mr. Cohen is a Shareholder with ECS Financial Services, Inc., and has been with the firm since 2003. His expertise includes offering expert guidance in many areas such as: Strategic Business Planning, Financial Negotiation, Accounting System Design, Personal and Corporate Tax Planning, IRS Audits, and Financial Statement Compilations. A testifying expert witness, he has also conducted numerous forensic investigations in the areas of
Divorce, Loss of Income Calculations, Piercing the Corporate Veil, and Conversion.
Mr. Cohen's services include Reviews and Audits in the areas of for-profit, governmental and not-for-profit entities, manufacturing, distribution, interior design, and catering companies and restaurants among many types of closely held businesses.
Nancy A. Geary, CPA, CLP, is both a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Lease Professional. Ms. Geary has been with ECS Financial Services, Inc., a regional CPA firm, since 1984, and a Partner with the firm since 1990. Among other responsibilities, she manages the firm’s Leasing Services Department. Ms. Geary is proficient in various software packages specifically designed for the
Equipment Leasing Industry.
Ms. Geary’s primary areas of concentration include equipment lease portfolio management, accounting and consulting services for the equipment leasing industry, as well as accounting, auditing, income tax planning and compliance and management consulting for a wide variety of closely-held businesses.
Ms. Geary has participated in several expert witness engagements. Her experience includes preparation of expert witness reports, rebuttal reports, damage analysis, and forensic accounting. She has written numerous articles published in several leasing publications, and authored the Tax and Financial Accounting chapter of the CLP Foundation’s Handbook of Equipment Leasing.
Samuel N. Oliva, CPA, CMA, CLP, has served as Managing Partner of ECS Financial Services, Inc. since 1982. Concurrently, Mr. Oliva has served as CEO of Beacon Funding Corporation, a successful equipment leasing company, since 1990.
Mr. Oliva is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Management Accountant, Certified Lease Professional, licensed business broker and a licensed real estate broker. He serves on the Board of Directors of Harris Bank in Chicago. His distinctions include the 2002 Financial Executive Award from the Institute of Management Accountants and the 2003 Distinguished Alumnus Award from Western Illinois University.
Mr. Oliva’s accounting and tax background, coupled with his superior business knowledge and management skills, his expertise within the leasing industry, and his natural business sense, make him uniquely qualified to opine on
Accounting, Finance, Credit, and Real Estate related matters. He has served as an expert witness in a variety of situations. His experience includes serving as a confident and knowledgeable trial witness, preparation of expert witness reports, evaluation of damages and consulting with attorney’s throughout the various stages of litigation.
View ECS Financial Services' Consulting Profile.
Alistair Hynd has over 15 years experience in Corporate Finance. He heads the Project Finance and Financial Modelling Team that functions at Baker Tilly Corporate Finance, LLP (Baker Tilly). Mr. Hynd specialises in Project Finance, PFI, PPP and Debt Advisory plus Financial Modeling. 
Danny F. Dukes and Associates, LLC is a Forensic Accounting Firm that specializes in expert witness and litigation support services. We have investigated fraud and various financial transactions. We are extremely knowledgeable in all aspects of laws pertaining to financial transactions and lending transactions.
David Ostrove, JD, CPA (Inactive), Mr. Ostrove is a certified specialist in Taxation Law, certified by the California Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California since 1975. He is also a California Certified Public Accountant since 1957 and a California Lawyer since 1960.
Kelly T. Hickel, Co-founder at EWCS, is a Financial and Business Advisor who has served as a senior executive for over 30 years. Mr. Hickel has many years of experience in the technology industry and with turnarounds of troubled companies. Throughout his career, he has arranged numerous private and public company financings and financial restructurings and has raised and/or returned over a $1 billion to investors and lenders. Mr. Hickel served as Turn-around President to Miniscribe Corp., a troubled Fortune 500, $600 million annual revenue disk drive manufacturer, and President of the Maxwell Technology Information Systems Group from 1993 until 1997, during which, Maxwell was the 9th best performing stock on NASDAQ and the #1 performing stock in California in 1996. As Chairman and Chief Restructuring Office of The Tyree Company in Farmingdale, New York, Mr. Hickel was responsible for running the largest oil downstream services company in the northeast. With all of his experience, he then founded and managed emerging Pharmaceutical companies, taking a product through FDA approval for a supplement through distribution in over 2000 retail pharmacy outlets. 
ins, ASA BV/IA, MAFF, CEP, is the Managing Director and heads the valuation, litigation, and advisory services practices at Teknos. He has worked in Silicon Valley for more than 35 years, as a Valuation expert, a Venture Capitalist, and an Investment Banker. Mr. Timmins has overseen 1,000s of valuations, fairness opinions, and solvency opinions in connection with financial reporting, tax compliance, merger and acquisition transactions, financings, spin-offs, and recapitalizations, and litigation. He has also participated in numerous merger and acquisition transactions, private placements, and public offerings during his career. Prior to forming Teknos, Mr. Timmins was a Managing Director at Pagemill Partners, where he created and managed the valuation practice. Before that he was the Managing Director of the Silicon Valley office of NIF Ventures (the venture capital arm of Daiwa Securities SMBC of Japan), and a General Partner of Glenwood Ventures and Glenwood Capital. Earlier in his career, he held positions in investment banking at Hambrecht & Quist and Salomon Brothers. Mr. Timmins has served as an expert witness for more than 60 cases involving valuation, fiduciary duty, and venture capital practice. He has been retained as an expert by both plaintiffs and defendants.
One of the industry's leading law firm services experts, Michael J. Garibaldi, CPA, ABV, CFF, CGMA, has a strong background providing efficient and affordable solutions to the many complex issues facing the legal profession today.
