HKA adds three principals from StoneTurn's Dallas office
HKA, a risk and disputes consulting firm, has added three senior leaders from rival firm StoneTurn as principals in its forensic accounting and commercial damages (FACD) practice in Dallas. The consultancy also hired Brad Dragoon as a director in its FACD practice in New York City.
The hiring of Jae Ellis, Melyana Melyana, and Veronique Chauveau comes shortly after partner Jeffrey Matthews left StoneTurn’s Dallas practice for HKA.
Ellis joins as a business development principal with over 25 years of experience. He has deep expertise managing relationships with law firms and corporate legal departments, as well as advising attorneys on finding ideal testifying and consulting expert witnesses.
Jae previously was VP for business development at StoneTurn, a senior director at Huron Consulting Group, a senior manager at Deloitte, and an attorney at Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP. He has a JD from the University of Texas and a bachelor’s degree in government from Harvard University.
Melyana joins HKA as a principal with nearly two decades of experience in fraud investigations, forensic accounting, data mining and analysis, litigation support, and business valuation. Her advisory work includes conducting money laundering investigations, compliance reviews for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and compliance attestation audits for the FCC.
Melyana was previously a managing director at StoneTurn, a senior manager at Weaver, and a senior associate at Charles River Associates and Grant Thornton. She has a bachelor’s degree in finance from Oklahoma State University and is a certified fraud examiner.
Chauveau joins as a principal with over 25 years of experience in fraud investigations, forensic accounting, and data mining and analysis. She has deep expertise estimating damages in various dispute areas, writing expert reports, and preparing expert witnesses for deposition or testimony.
Chauveau previously was a managing director at StoneTurn, a director at Weaver, a principal at Charles River Associates, and a manager at Grant Thornton. She has an MBA from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Université d'Auvergne in France, and is a certified fraud examiner.
Dragoon joins as a director with over a decade of experience in business intelligence, fraud investigations, anti-money laundering, sanctions and export controls, and anti-corruption compliance. He has prepared expert testimony, led complex investigations, provided financial analyses, and advised on risk management strategies.
Dragoon was previously a principal at Charles River Associates, a director at FTI Consulting, and an analyst at Kroll. He has an MBA from Duke University and a bachelor’s degree from American University, and is a certified fraud examiner and certified anti-money laundering specialist.
“We are excited to welcome Jae, Brad, Melyana, and Veronique to HKA as we continue to expand our FACD team across the Americas. Their expertise and years of experience in a wide range of forensic accounting and commercial damages matters will significantly supplement the capabilities of our current practice and allow us to continue to provide high-quality expert services to our clients,” said Ave Tucker, partner, strategic growth advisor, HKA.