CPA Firm Diefenbach Delio Kearney & DeDionisio
Merges with Malin Bergquist, One of Erie's
Oldest and Largest CPA Firms
Combined Firm to Have 18 Partners and 100 Employees in Western Pennsylvania; Bluemling Named CEO and Beach COO; Kearney Joins Executive Committee

Erie, August 3, 2007 – Erie CPA firm Diefenbach Delio Kearney & DeDionisio has merged with Malin, Bergquist and Company, LLP, one of Erie’s oldest and largest CPA firms. This is Malin Bergquist’s second major merger of the year, and since the start of 2007 the firm has doubled in size. The firm now has 18 partners and 53 employees in Erie.

DDK&D brings six partners to Malin Bergquist who have more than 150 years of CPA experience and whose clients are more than 350 businesses and 1,000 individuals in the Erie area. The combined firm will operate under Malin, Bergquist’s name, effective July 1, 2007.

The merger deepens the expertise and broadens the capacity of Malin Bergquist in the areas of closely held businesses, litigation support, business valuations and medical practices. The firm now has nine certified valuation analysts and certified fraud examiners.

“Serving closely held businesses better, with greater personal attention by our partners, is at the core of this merger,” said Jeffrey E. Beach, Erie managing partner. “This combination of strengths gives us the ability to provide more sophisticated tax and business planning for clients and give them expanded resources for prospering in today’s increasingly competitive commercial climate.

The new partners joining Malin Bergquist are:

• David A. DeDionisio, CPA, CVA, CFE
• Peter M. Delio, JD, CPA, CVA
• Gary W. Diefenbach, CPA
• Clarence W. Kearney, CPA
• Craig C. Moffatt, CPA, MBA, MT, CVA
• Thomas M. Schaeffer, CPA

Beach has been named firmwide chief financial officer, while David G. Bluemling in Pittsburgh has been elected firmwide chief executive officer. Kearney, formerly a partner with DDK&D, will join them on the firm’s executive committee.

Malin Bergquist now is the only CPA firm based in Erie that is a member of all three quality assurance programs of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants – Center for Public Company Audit Firms, Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center and Governmental Audit Quality Center.

Malin Bergquist’s 2007 Growth – The DDK&D merger is Malin Bergquist’s fifth significant expansion of 2007. This has included the following moves:

• In February, Malin Bergquist merged with Deluzio, Teems & Anzovino, one of Westmoreland County’s largest CPA firms. DTA is renowned for a broad clientele with operations in Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, as well as in China, Puerto Rico and England. DTA’s partners in Greensburg and Jeannette are Charles A. Deluzio, Jeffrey P. Anzovino and Joseph E. Petrillo.
  
  
• In mid-February, the firm announced that CPA Anthony J. Dodds had joined the firm as Director of its Public Company/SEC Group. Dodds formerly was manager of assurance and advisory business services with Ernst & Young, where he advised clients on SEC reporting and Sarbanes-Oxley for companies in manufacturing, retail, technology, construction, healthcare and gaming. Previously, he was senior manager of corporate accounting for Del Monte Foods in Pittsburgh, director of financial planning for a former division of Hershey Foods, and various financial management roles within the H.J. Heinz Company. Click for more.
  
  
• In April, CPA Timothy A. Goldsmith has joined the firm as audit manager to provide audit services to clients ranging from not for profit organizations to public companies, including Sarbanes Oxley (SOX) compliance. He has 22 years of experience in financial reporting and public accounting. Prior to joining Malin Bergquist, Goldsmith was an accounting manager with Rent Way, Inc., a public company in the retail industry with more $500 million in revenue, where he managed compliance with SEC and accounting regulations. Click for more.
  
  
• In April, the firm promoted CPA Peter J. Kern to partner. With more than 15 years experience, Kern focuses his practice on audits of publicly traded companies, including companies contemplating initial public offerings. 

About Malin Bergquist - Malin Bergquist is best known for its niche practice providing audits and consulting for foreign-owned businesses operating in Western Pennsylvania, and as one of a handful of local firms approved by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to provide audits for publicly owned companies. The firm also practices in the areas of automobile dealerships, financial institutions, tax-exempt organizations, oil and gas companies, and family owned businesses.

Clients of Malin Bergquist include foreign-owned subsidiaries of companies located in Germany, Switzerland, Spain, The Netherlands and India, as well as U.S. companies with subsidiaries in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile and China. The firm’s public company/SEC compliance and Sarbanes-Oxley consulting clients include construction contractors, oil and gas producers, insurance firms, manufacturers and technology companies.

The firm is a member of CPAmerica International, a network of more than 70 large, closely integrated CPA firms across the United States and, through its strategic alliance with Horwath International, more than 15,000 professionals in 85 countries around the world. Clients of CPAmerica firms receive the personal attention and concern of a local CPA firm with the knowledge and resources of a large global network.

For more information, visit www.malinbergquist.com or www.ddkd.com.