LOS ANGELES, March 1, 2018 – Miller Kaplan Arase LLP (“Miller Kaplan”) is pleased to announce that effective March 1, 2018, Catalina Kirby, CPA and Nicholas Sanchez, J.D., LL.M. have been promoted to Partner. Kirby, with 12 years of public accounting experience, specializes in financial statement audits of employee benefit plans. Sanchez, an attorney for nearly 15 years, specializes in tax consulting, controversy tax opinions, and the issues raised by funds of money established to resolve claims.
“We are proud of Catalina’s and Nicholas’s achievements,” commented Doug Waite, managing partner at Miller Kaplan. “With proven expertise in their respective fields, I expect this younger generation of partners will energize the firm and play a significant role in our continued growth.”
Kirby, located in Seattle for the last two years, first joined the firm’s North Hollywood office in 2006. She has focused on employee benefit plans – providing financial statements, agreed-upon procedures, and reviews, and has experience with financial statements for nonprofit organizations, as well.
“I feel lucky to have found a home in Miller Kaplan and am excited to take this next step here,” noted Kirby. “With this new role, I look forward to strengthening our Seattle office and further growing the firm in the Pacific Northwest.”
Kirby graduated from California State University of Northridge. She is a licensed CPA in California and Washington, and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Washington and California Societies of Certified Public Accountants.
Sanchez, based out of the firm’s San Francisco office, began his career at Damasco & Associates LLP (which, in 2016, joined Miller Kaplan) where he helped seek 19 private letter rulings from the IRS. He provides his clients with consulting and compliance services regarding information returns and withholding, offers general tax advisory services, and advises clients with respect to the tax implications of settlements and judgements – whether arising out of class action litigation, administrative enforcement actions, bankruptcies, receiverships, or otherwise.
“I am thrilled to join an elite and talented group of partners – my two mentors among them,” remarked Sanchez. “I hope to be an example to the next generation of accountants and tax attorneys and to continue to serve as an invaluable resource for my clients.”
Sanchez earned a J.D. and an LL.M. in taxation, and is a member of the State Bar of California and the American Bar Association; he is admitted to practice law in California, the United States Tax Court, and before the Internal Revenue Service.
