2026 Forensic, Litigation & Valuation Services Conference - WEBCAST BOTH DAYS -

Overview

Join us for the Forensic, Litigation & Business Valuation Workshop, part of the 2nd Annual Ledgers & Legends Week, and gain practical insights into today's most pressing issues in business valuation, forensic accounting, litigation support, and financial investigations. Learn from experienced practitioners, explore emerging trends, and strengthen your ability to navigate complex challenges with confidence and clarity.

Additional Highlights to Note

• Join us a day early for Ethics for Public Practice session on Sunday, August 16. 
• Come early for the 2nd Annual Ledgers & Legends Ball on Saturday, August 15 at The Ritz-Carlton, a black-tie optional celebration honoring CPA achievements with live music, dinner, open bar, awards, and an unforgettable evening of connection.

AGENDA

Monday, August 17 
 
8:00 – 8:25 am Registration & Continental Breakfast
 
8:25 am Opening Remarks 
 
8:30 – 9:20 am 
Hot Topics in Valuation and Litigation Services 
Ralph A. Litolff, Jr., CPA/CFF/ABV, CVA, MBA • RAL Forensics, LLC • Metairie, LA 
 
9:20 – 10:35 am 
Overview of AI-Related Valuation Consideration 
Yigal Rechtman, CPA, CFE, CITP, CISM • Rechtman Consulting • Fort Lee, NJ 
This course examines valuation considerations for companies that develop or rely on artificial intelligence technologies. Participants will explore how AI affects key valuation inputs, including intangible assets, revenue sustainability, discount rates, and company-specific risk. The program also reviews the use of AI tools in valuation analysis, including comparable company searches and predictive analytics, while addressing regulatory and ethical issues that may affect defensibility of valuation conclusions. 
 
10:35 – 10:55 am   Break/Visit Exhibitors 
 
10:55 am – 12:10 pm   
Intersection of M&A and Valuation: A Practical Approach  
Jason MacMorran, CPA/ABV/CFF, CVA, MS • EisnerAmper • Baton Rouge, LA 
This session explores how merger and acquisition concepts can inform business valuation, from enterprise value to net working capital and debt-like items. Attendees will gain practical guidance on how valuation principles apply to dealmaking and how dealmaking realities can apply to valuation. 
 
12:10 – 1:10 pm Lunch/Visit Exhibitors 
 
1:10 – 2:00 pm 
The Fraud Landscape 
Det. Michael Shard, CFCI, CCCI, CCCE • St. John Parish Sheriff's Office • Laplace, LA 
 
2:00 – 2:50 pm 
Effective Expert Testimony for Jury Trials 
Sean McLaughlin, JD • Kean Miller • New Orleans, LA
 
2:50-3:10 pm Break/Visit Exhibitors 
 
3:10 - 4:00 pm 
From Clause to Courtroom: Understanding Core Business and Employment Contracts in Damages and Disputes 
Linda Perez Clark, JD • Kean Miller • Baton Rouge, LA
Andrew Mahtook, JD • Kean Miller • New Orleans, LA
Derek Brondum, JD • Kean Miller • Lafayette, LA
 
4:00 – 4:50 
Expert Witness Pitfalls: A Panel Discussion 
Yigal Rechtman, CPA, CFE, CITP, CISM • Rechtman Consulting • Fort Lee, NJ 
Kevin Willis, CPA, CGMA • Taylor and Willis CPAS and Advisors • Metairie, LA 
Bert Verdigets, CPA, CGMA, MBA, CFE, CFF • Bert F. Verdigets • Kenner, LA 
This live panel discussion will explore practical issues and emerging considerations relevant to virtual education, professional practice, and student-centered implementation. Panelists will share real-world experiences, lessons learned, and strategies that support effective decision-making in dynamic learning environments for Experts in a litigation matter. Through interactive discussion and audience engagement, participants will gain practical insights they can consider applying within their own educational, administrative, or professional roles. 
 
 
 
Tuesday, August 18 
 
7:30 – 7:55 am Registration & Continental Breakfast
 
7:55 Opening Remarks 
 
8:00 – 8:50 am 
The Special Master Setting: Rules, Procedures and Financial Experts 
Frank Tranchina, JD • Tranchina Law Firm • Covington, LA 
 
8:50 – 9:40 am   
Marketing 101: Building Your FLVS Book of Business 
Jim Koerber, CPA, ABV, CFF • EisnerAmper • Hattiesburg, MS 
Often CPAs and other professionals spend a lot of time and money obtaining business valuation and forensic accounting credentials but become discouraged when opportunities for those services are not obtained.? This presentation will assist those who provide forensic, valuation, and litigation services with ideas, recommendations, and suggestions to grow and expand their book of business. 
 
9:40 am – 10:00 am Break/Visit Exhibitors 
 
10:00 – 11:15 am 
Trust, but Verify: Prompting AI Without Getting Burned 
Charles Renwick, CPA, CFA • CMR Associates • Covington, LA 
Large language models can draft forensic memos, summarize depositions, and build timelines in seconds — but like a bad witness, they're confidently wrong and never say "I don't know." This hands-on session gives you a simple framework for writing prompts that get reliable, defensible results, plus the verification and confidentiality guardrails that keep AI from becoming a liability. 
 
11:15 am – 12:05 pm 
Discounts for Lack of Marketability  
Riley Busenlener, CPA/ABV, ASA, AEP, JD • Chaffe & Associates, Inc. • New Orleans, LA  
Jason MacMorran, CPA/ABV/CFF, CVA, MS • EisnerAmper • Baton Rouge, LA 
This session examines the theory and application of discounts for lack of marketability (DLOM) in business valuation, including the empirical studies and quantitative models most commonly used to support them. Attendees will gain practical guidance on selecting appropriate methodologies, documenting their conclusions, and defending DLOM positions under scrutiny from reviewers, regulators, and the courts. 
 
12:05 – 1:05 pm Lunch/Visit Exhibitors 
 
1:05 – 2:05 pm 
Economic Update 
Spkr TBA • Hancock Whitney • New Orleans, LA 
 
2:05 – 3:05 pm 
Rules of Evidence: What Trial Attorneys Wish CPAs Knew 
Ryan Luminais, JD • Sher Garner Cahill Richter Klein & Hilbert, L.L.C. • New Orleans, LA 
 
3:05 – 3:25 pm   Break/Visit Exhibitors 
 
3:25 – 4:20 pm 
Economic Damages in Trade Secret Litigation: Lessons from Recent Court Decisions 
Jessica LeBlanc, CPA, MBA, CFF • Jessica D. LeBlanc, CPA, LLC • New Orleans, LA 
Kevin Willis, CPA, CGMA • Taylor and Willis CPAS and Advisors • Metairie, LA