Aon Launches Forensic Accounting Business

Aon Consulting announced that its financial advisory and litigation consulting services practice has established a Sarbanes-Oxley compliance consulting group. The company also announced that Michel Hagenaar has joined Aon Consulting as a senior director to lead this new group.

"It is evident that companies of all sizes continue to struggle in achieving SOX compliance in an efficient and cost-effective manner," said chief executive Andrew Appel, in a statement

Hagenaar joins Aon Consulting from risk-consulting company Kroll Inc., where he led the SOX consulting practice. At Kroll, he managed numerous SOX engagements and internal control assessment projects at public and private companies and not-for-profit entities. Prior to joining Kroll, he was a senior manager with Deloitte & Touche.

In addition to SOX consulting, the compliance consulting group offers public and private companies and not-for-profit groups a range of regulatory and corporate governance services. The group also provides internal control assessment services. Aon just launched a financial advisory and litigation consulting services practice in January.

Hagenaar will be based in New York, along with Aon executive vice president Jerry Barbanel, who is serving as co-global leader of the broader practice group with Roger Siefert. Barbanel and Siefert also joined Aon last month from Kroll, which handles forensic accounting services for Aon's rival, Marsh & McLennan Cos.

Parent company Aon Corp. is the world's second-largest insurance broker. Aon expects the entire consulting services practice to employ between 75 and 100 people in the next three months. At least one additional office will be located in Chicago.

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