Brian Behler and Melanie Sexton Mick, who have been managing the Williams & Webster PS CPA firm for the past two years, say they're buying the firm from founder Kevin J. Williams and have changed its name to BehlerMick PS.

The name change, they say, is intended to communicate the firm's revitalization after an arduous period of recovery from actions that led to professional actions against Williams and the firm's other namesake, John G. Webster.

They say Williams retired shortly after the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), which oversees auditors of publicly traded companies, barred him in 2007 "from being associated with a registered public accounting firm," in the words of a PCAOB release, as a result of a 2003 audit of Diatect International Corp., a Utah insecticide maker. The oversight board says it suspended Webster for one year for failing to review his partner's audit diligently. Webster also retired from his partnership in the firm, but Behler and Mick, who have managed the firm since the disciplinary action, invited him to rejoin the firm as technical manager.

The new principals have refocused priorities to repair and strengthen the firm's reputation, Behler says.

Behler is experienced in accounting challenges faced by emerging companies, he says, adding that Mick has a strong background in auditing and internal controls.

The firm has a staff of 11, including six certified public accountants, and occupies 3,400 square feet of space on the fourth floor of the Bank of America Financial Center downtown, having moved there in May from larger quarters on the 19th floor.

In a move intended to bolster confidence in the firm, Behler and Mick last year severed the firm's relationship with a former client, Arctic Oil & Gas Corp., and withdrew a previously issued audit report, Behler says.

Behler says BehlerMick is registered with the PCAOB and specializes in audits of Securities and Exchange Commission registrants, tax consulting, construction service, and small-business services. The firm's clients are public and private companies located throughout the Pacific Northwest and North America, he says.