LEAR & PANNEPACKER - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Associate Audit / Tax Supervisor
Abigail joined the firm in 2018. Her areas of focus include preparing federal and state income tax returns for individual and business clients, tax planning for individuals and businesses, trust tax filings, audits, reviews, compilations and other financial statement preparation, and general accounting for small businesses.
Andre joined the firm in 2022. His main area of focus includes preparation of federal and state income tax returns for individuals and businesses, along with tax planning and other miscellaneous consulting services. Andre is also a licensed enrolled agent.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, he worked as a senior accountant for a firm in Iselin, NJ providing accounting, bookkeeping, and tax services to a diverse client base.
Andrea joined the firm in January 2024. Her areas of focus include audits, reviews, and compilation engagements for small and mid-sized businesses and not-for-profit organizations.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, she worked for a public accounting firm in New Jersey focusing on clients in the real estate industry and closely held businesses. Andrea has over ten years of progressive experience as Senior Financial Auditor, Collection Specialist, and Senior Auditor.
Andrea is passionate about financial strategy, continued education, and helping organizations thrive. She is currently pursuing her CPA license in the State of New Jersey. To date, she has passed the AUD, REG, and FAR sections of the CPA exam.
She is fluent in Hungarian and Romanian.
Education
Master of Science in Accounting from DeVry University
Bachelor of Business Accounting from Phoenix University
Bachelor of Economics from Babes-Bolyai University (Romania)
Practice Areas
Audit and Assurance
Job Titles:
- Associate Audit Supervisor
Barbara recently joined the firm and brings with her over thirty years of public accounting experience. Barbara has extensive experience working with individuals and businesses in many industries, such as professional services, including healthcare professionals and practices, real estate professionals, condo associations, restaurants, and non-profits. Barbara enjoys working closely with small family-owned businesses to assist them in achieving their goals through business and tax planning.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Accountants and Advisors Team
Job Titles:
- Office Administrator - Newtown
Denise joined the firm in 1995. Her areas of focus include bookkeeping both on and off-site for a wide variety of individuals and businesses, including payables, receivables, and bank reconciliation, interim internal financial statements, budgeting, inventory and sales tax compliance, payroll preparation, tax return preparation, and in-house client services.
Dennis joined the firm in 2018 and brings with him over twenty-five years of public accounting experience. His areas of focus include complex taxation issues and compliance, multi-state filings, closely held businesses, and high net worth individuals. Dennis interacts closely with clients to understand their unique and complex needs, and provides innovative tax planning, financial strategizing, and consulting to help maximize earnings, maintain compliance, and achieve cost savings. He has experience in multi-million-dollar business buying, selling, and divestitures. He also has developed several banking relationships to assist clients with their financing needs.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, Dennis worked as a partner for a public accounting firm in Central New Jersey.
Dennis joined the firm in 2006 and manages our Newtown PA office. His areas of focus are in the supervision and preparation of tax returns, audits, and other financial statements with an emphasis on small business accounting and management information systems. Dennis has a passion for working with and assisting non-profit Organizations as well as assisting entrepreneurs with business planning. In addition, Dennis is fluent in Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Head
- Audit / Tax Supervisor
- MAcc
- Member of the Audit and Assurance Department
- Member of the Tax Department
Dylan has been with the firm since 2016. Dylan is an extremely motivated young professional who has experience across many broad areas of public accounting.
As a member of the tax department, Dylan provides compliance, planning and preparation services to a variety of companies in industries such as real estate, hospitality, IT, retail, manufacturing, and craftsmanship. He also works closely with many local non-profits and private foundations.
As a member of the audit and assurance department, Dylan provides audit, review, compilation, and preparation services to both for-profit and non-profit clients.
Dylan is the head of the electronic-filing department, handling all tasks associated with the timely and accurate submission of tax returns. He is also a member of the business formation and registration department, helping entrepreneurs make the first step in their commercial endeavors.
Eric Robert Lear founded the firm in 1984 with a passion for business excellence. In addition to his commitment towards managing the firm's strategic, personnel, and financial aspects, Eric brings his expertise in a wide array of accounting and advisory services. His areas of focus include strategic planning for small family-owned and mid-sized businesses, financial arrangements for businesses and individuals, customized financial planning for individuals, planning and negotiating complex business transactions, matrimonial planning, negotiations with the IRS and other taxing agencies, as well as tax planning and compliance services. Eric has achieved success with his clients across all industries through the use of goal assessment, strategic planning, and objective realization.
Eric heads the firm's employee benefit plan audits and has successfully led the firm in receiving over thirty years of "pass" ratings with the AICPA Peer Review Program. The firm has also recently passed a quality control audit by the Department of Labor for one of its clients.
Eric volunteers his time with numerous professional, civic, and not-for-profit organizations. He has won numerous awards for his commitment to the community.
Eric is also the computer systems and security partner, client and public relationships partner, and the CPE coordinator at the firm.
Eric Lear founded Lear & Pannepacker, LLP in 1984, opening the first office on Nassau Street in downtown Princeton. Eric's goal was to establish a firm of accounting professionals that emphasized outstanding client service and community involvement and worked proactively to meet its clients' financial and business planning needs.
Gary Pannepacker worked with Eric early in his public accounting career, joining the firm in 1988 as its tax partner. Eric and Gary developed a teamwork approach to meeting client needs and solving even the most complex financial challenges, offering a combination of strategic business planning and detailed implementation to a growing family of entrepreneurial clients.
Scot Pannepacker joined the firm in 1989, becoming partner in 1999. After the unexpected passing of Gary that same year, Scot helped carry on the tradition of excellence established by Eric and Gary.
Job Titles:
- Accounting Supervisor
- Associate
- Member of the Accountants and Advisors Team
Genevieve has been with the firm since 2019. She specializes in the preparation of financial statements, month-end close and compilations, assisting with acquisitions, client audits and due diligence, creating efficiencies for the firm and clients using technology and online accounting software, and preparation of various tax returns for businesses, individuals, and trusts for both the USA and Canada.
Genevieve assists clients in adherence to tax compliance, tax planning, and prepares financial projections. She also creates effective processes, reports, and provides general accounting and other support services to the clients.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, she worked as a senior accountant for a firm in Halifax, Canada providing accounting, online systems, and tax services to a diverse client base.
Job Titles:
- Associate Audit Supervisor
George joined the firm in 2019. His areas of focus include audits, reviews, and compilation engagements for small and mid-sized businesses and not-for-profit organizations.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, he worked as a senior accountant for a large regional firm in Clark, NJ.
Job Titles:
- Homeowners Association - Board Member and Treasurer ( 1994 - 2018 )
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant
- Collections Manager
Jay joined the firm in 2016. His area of focus includes individual, corporate and partnership taxation, as well as trusts and estates. He also consults with clients to give them direction when forming new companies or making business or individual tax planning decisions. He reviews client's QuickBooks files so that tax returns can be prepared. Jay owned his own CPA firm for more than thirty years before merging with the firm.
After nine years of dedicated service to Lear & Pannepacker, Jay has retired. Throughout his tenure, Jay has made significant contributions to provide guidance and tax planning to his family of clients, and we are incredibly grateful for the leadership, expertise, and passion he brought to the role. Jay will be greatly missed by all of us.
In July 2016, the firm of Jay Lesser CPA, PC joined Lear & Pannepacker, LLP. The Lesser firm, located in Plainsboro, NJ, has an expansive practice specializing in tax planning and compliance. Jay and his long-time associate Lisa Johnson joined the firm to continue providing the individual attention that he provided for over 30 years.
Jay has been with the firm since 2022. Jay divides his time between reviewing audits, accounting, and tax engagements. He also prepares income tax returns for individuals, trusts, partnerships, and corporations.
Jay's prior work experience includes over thirty-five years of public accounting with national, regional, and small public accounting firms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. His experience includes real estate, construction, manufacturing, retail, wholesale, technical schools, physician practices, broker dealers, and non-profit organizations.
Job Titles:
- Billing Manager
- Executive Administrator
John joined the firm in 2014. His areas of focus are preparing federal and state income tax returns for individual and business clients, tax planning for individuals and businesses, estate and trust tax filings, audits, reviews, compilations, and other financial statement preparation, and general accounting for small businesses.
Joseph joined the firm in 2013. His areas of focus include the supervision and preparation of individual, business and payroll tax returns, tax and strategic planning, and account management with an emphasis on local fire districts. Prior to becoming a principal at Lear & Pannepacker, LLP, Joseph was a partner at Vizzini & Marcucci, LLC where he spent over thirty-seven years as a Public Accountant. He also brings over twenty-five years of additional accounting experience in areas such as account management, budgeting, administration, supervision, and business management.
Karen joined the firm in 2008. Her areas of focus include the preparation of individual tax returns, estate and trust tax filings, tax planning, and general accounting for high-net-worth individuals. She has prior experience in public accounting, including both individual and business taxation.
Job Titles:
- Partner, Director Assurance
Ken joined the firm in 2016. His areas of focus include audits, reviews, attestation and compilation engagements for non-public companies, non-profit organizations, and employee benefit plans. Ken's expertise in the not-for-profit environment includes preparation and review of form 990 and yellow book audits for entities receiving governmental funding. He is also experienced in the preparation and review of individual, corporate and partnership income tax returns. Ken has assisted many companies with due diligence and consulting related to mergers and acquisitions.
Laura has been with the firm since 2009. Her areas of focus are in the supervision and preparation of tax returns, audits, and other financial statements. She works with entities in various industries, including manufacturing, professional services, real estate, food industry, health services, retail, and non-profit organizations.
Laura has extensive experience in tax and strategic planning and preparation of tax returns for individuals and businesses, including trust and estate tax filings. She has extensive involvement in client account management and handling required tax return extensions for our firm's clients.
Laura also contributes to the development of our entry-level staff and participates in the firm's intern and staff training and orientation programs.
Prior to joining Lear & Pannepacker, she worked as a senior accountant for a firm in Tampa, Florida providing tax, accounting, and bookkeeping services to a diverse client base. Laura is a registered certified public accountant in New Jersey and Florida.
In January 2023, the firm of Mark Shavell, CPA joined Lear and Pannepacker, LLP. Mark's firm was established in July 1987 and served various counties in Pennsylvania, namely, Philadelphia, Montgomery, and Bucks counties. Throughout the years, his firm served dental practices along with general accounting and tax practice clients. Mark's firm also focused on advising and supporting small businesses located in the Philadelphia area by providing tax planning, compilation and review, payroll taxes, as well as other compliance services. Mark also brought with him to our firm his assistant of twenty years, Janet Farides, to help continue serving our clients. Mark and Janet are excited to join Lear and Pannepacker, LLP at our Newtown, PA location. They remain committed to serving clients in the Philadelphia area.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Partner, Director Taxation
Job Titles:
- Member of the Accountants and Advisors Team
- Tax Supervisor
Job Titles:
- Director, International Tax
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Partner, Estate, Gift, Litigation Support & Valuation