Speakers

• Alysson Mills Mills & Amond, LLP | New Orleans, LA
  

  Alysson Mills

  Mills & Amond, LLP | New Orleans, LA

  Alysson Mills is a partner of the law firm Mills & Amond, LLP.

  Alysson’s practice is diverse. She represents businesses in all forms of litigation and clients of all backgrounds in cases implicating the First Amendment. She is a member of the Criminal Justice Act Panel and represents indigent criminal defendants in federal courts. She volunteers her professional time to causes that are important to her.

  A large part of Alysson’s practice is dedicated to appeals. She has represented clients in the U.S. Supreme Court; several federal courts of appeals; and the Mississippi and Louisiana Supreme Courts. She regularly argues in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

  Alysson is the court-appointed receiver in Securities & Exchange Commission vs. Adams, et al., No. 3:18-cv-252 (S.D. Miss.), and charged with recovering money for victims of Mississippi’s largest Ponzi scheme.

  Outside the office, Alysson teaches First Amendment and media law at Tulane University and serves on several civic boards.

• Cort Thomas Brown Fox | Dallas, TX
  

  Cort Thomas

  Brown Fox | Dallas, TX

  Cort Thomas is a trial attorney with extensive litigation experience in federal district, bankruptcy, and appellate courts and state courts throughout the United States. He frequently serves as local counsel in cases pending in the Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas, and recently completed service as the President of the Dallas Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. He is a member of the Northern District of Texas’s Court Advisory Committee, as well as its Bench Bar Committee.

  Drawing on his experience in federal courts, Cort recently served as the court-appointed federal equity receiver in SEC v. Gallagher Financial Group, et al., No. 3:19-cv-575-C, in the Northern District of Texas, where he is represented by longtime NAFER members Kelly Crawford of Scheef and Stone and Charlene Koonce of Brown Fox PLLC. Cort also serves as a mediator and arbitrator, where he has handled a variety of commercial disputes.

  After earning a long list of honors during college and law school—all at the University of Texas—Cort began his legal career as a law clerk in the chambers of United States District Judge Jane J. Boyle, where he gained invaluable experience and exposure to local practice in the Northern District of Texas, particularly receiverships. After spending seven years at Vinson & Elkins LLP in Dallas, he joined Brown Fox PLLC as a partner in 2018. He joined NAFER that same year and is eternally grateful for the connections and information gained through this fantastic group.

• Geoff Winkler American Fiduciary Services LLC | Portland, OR
  

  Geoff Winkler

  American Fiduciary Services LLC | Portland, OR

  Geoff Winkler is a Founding Member and CEO of American Fiduciary Services LLC. Mr. Winkler leads a team of legal and financial industry professionals who specialize in managing complex investigations, forensic accounting, fiduciary and insolvency services, and securities litigation support. He has extensive experience testifying as an expert witness and has served as CFO and COO in dozens of State and Federal District Court receiverships, corporate monitorships, and in other cases as a fiduciary and insolvency expert. These roles included responsibility for: managing operations with up to thousands of employees; preparing, auditing, and/or restating financial statements per Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and SEC reporting requirements; instituting internal controls to prevent fraud and provide assurances in reporting; and turnaround and restructuring businesses. In addition, Mr. Winkler has initiated litigation against executive leadership, board of directors, and financial oversight committees for failure to execute the duties required by their fiduciary duty to the company, including failure to institute strong internal controls; provide oversight of financial reporting; and, ensure GAAP requirements are being met. Due to the varying nature of these assignments, Mr. Winkler works with a diverse team of experts that supplement his expertise based on the specific needs of a given case. Mr. Winkler’s experience includes leadership in large and complex fraud investigations and forensic accounting efforts in numerous industries including manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, capital leases, consumer services and retail sales.

• Joseph Gardemal III Alvarez & Marsal | Washington, DC
  

  Joseph Gardemal III

  Alvarez & Marsal | Washington, DC

  Joseph T. Gardemal III is a Managing Director with Alvarez & Marsal Disputes and Investigations in Washington, D.C. He has more than 30 years of experience in forensic accounting investigations, valuation, auditing, and financial management for publicly traded, closely held, and public sector entities.

  Mr. Gardemal currently serves as the court-appointed Independent Monitor over GPB Capital Holdings, LLC, a New-York-based alternative asset management firm that acquires income-producing private companies.

  Mr. Gardemal has served as a court-appointed expert in U.S. District Court and as an accounting and valuation expert for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). He has led complex multi-national investigations and damages analyses and presented findings to the SEC, DOJ, corporate boards and audit committees, and other stakeholders. Mr. Gardemal has testified as an expert witness and presented expert reports in the U.S. and abroad, including U.S. District Courts throughout the U.S., the Supreme Court of Bermuda, the U.K. High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, and the ICC International Court of Arbitration.

  Mr. Gardemal has provided audit, business, and litigation consulting services for clients in various industries, including auto manufacturing, distribution, and retailing; government contracting/defense and aerospace; real estate and construction; professional services; and insurance and reinsurance.

  Prior to joining A&M, Mr. Gardemal was a Managing Principal in the CapAnalysis Group of Howrey, LLP. Previously, he was the CFO of the New Orleans District Attorney’s Office and an auditor in public accounting. Mr. Gardemal is a U.S. Army veteran of the Iraq War. As a Major, he commanded a company in the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion, U.S. Army Special Operations Command. He received the Bronze Star and the Iraq Campaign Medal with two campaign stars for his service; his unit received the Navy Presidential Unit Citation.

  Mr. Gardemal earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration (accounting concentration) from Loyola University. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a Certified Fraud Examiner, a Certified Valuation Analyst, and a Certified Government Financial Manager. He holds the Accredited in Business Valuation from the American Institute of CPAs and the Certified in Distressed Business Valuation from the Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Advisors (AIRA).