Texas Accounting Firms Merge

Weaver and Tidwell is merging with Polansky McNutt Perry & Co., expanding Dallas-based Weaver into the San Antonio market.

The merger will take effect on Jan. 1. Weaver already has offices in Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston, but the merger marks the firm's first foray into San Antonio. Weaver & Tidwell ranked 65th on Accounting Today's 2008 list of the Top 100 Firms. Polansky McNutt Perry & Company is ranked as the 11th largest San Antonio-area accounting firm by the San Antonio Business Journal Book of Lists 2008.

“It has been our firm’s vision to be in all five of the major Texas markets,” said Weaver and Tidwell managing partner W.M. “Mack” Lawhon. “As we began to look for merger partners in the San Antonio market, it was natural to turn to Ed Polansky, whom I’ve known for 25 years and see if they wanted to partner up with us. It’s critical to have a statewide presence."

Edward M. Polansky (pictured) has been named San Antonio executive partner. Laura G. McNutt will lead the local tax practice and John Crider will lead the location assurance practice. All of the firm's employees, including 12 CPAs, will join the combined firm, which will use the Weaver and Tidwell name.

Some of the employees in Weaver and Tidwell’s other offices have already expressed interest in moving to San Antonio.

“Mack caught us at a good time,” said Polansky. “We were at a crossroads with our firm, at an awkward stage of 25 people, and we wanted to groom a group of managers to take over when us older people started to retire. Mack came in and evaluated the situation. They were doing things we knew we would have to do. They were growing where we needed certain resources and had access to certain specialties that we needed to expand to, particularly in the auditing and accounting area.”

Lawhon expects the deal to add about $3.3 million in revenue to his firm, especially from the extra financial services work that Polansky's firm has generated. Weaver and Tidwell had about $51 million in revenue in the year ended May 2008, and Lawhon projects that the combined firm will hit $60 million by May 2009.

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