Matthew Pontiff
Tax Partner
Aprio Advisory Group, LLC
Who I work with
Throughout my professional career, I have worked with both small business owners and individuals who value the benefits of the professional advisor relationship. I work with clients in a variety of industries, including Professional Services, Real Estate, Medical, and Restaurant industries. I assist a wide variety of clients in tax planning and compliance including individuals, corporations, partnerships, and non-profit organizations. Working with startup companies has been particularly rewarding.
In addition, a large part of my practice involves litigation and valuation work. These clients cover a broad range of industries for valuation.
My specialty
Over the years, my practice has consisted of tax and traditional accounting services as well as valuation and litigation services. My main area of focus is valuation and litigation while maintaining stewardship of tax relationships, where I can most benefit a client with tax planning to minimize tax impacts. Professionally, I specialize in business valuations, litigation support, tax planning, and business consulting. I have represented various clients in purchases and sales of small and large businesses. In addition, I serve as an expert witness and testify in court and deposition in many civil cases. My specific focus in this area is valuing closely held businesses, calculation of economic damages, forensic accounting, and divorce tax planning issues.
Results I have delivered
I have been engaged on many child support and maintenance cases where the parties had businesses in which personal expenses were improperly deducted. Through forensic accounting, I provide reports of the parties’ finances that have been considered the most credible by the courts. The result of these cases has been proper income for child support and maintenance purposes.
In another case, I worked with a successful business client to model and justify reasonable owners wages through their passthrough entity to save a significant amount of money in taxes through the use of qualified business income deduction. Through the tax modeling, we were able to save the client close to $1,000,000 over the last several years.
Unique things about me
I am a diehard hockey fan, particularly for my team – the Colorado Avalanche. I grew up playing the sport, coached for many years, and continue to play competitively.
When I am not at work
I moved to Colorado to enjoy an active lifestyle – mountain biking, cycling, hiking, fishing, skiing, and generally spending time outdoors. I have climbed the 46 High Peaks in the Adirondacks and climbed one-third of the 54 14,000+ elevation peaks in Colorado – a current project my son and I are doing together. My family spends much of our vacation time camping in the Adirondacks, enjoying time at Little Moose Lake.
People say I am
A straight talker, empathetic, honest, funny, and a great communicator.
Affiliations
I earned my Bachelor in Business Administration with a Major in Accounting from Niagara University. I am a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Colorado Society Certified Accountants, and National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.