About Us

Optima’s award-winning staff of tax professionals provide comprehensive tax services to address just about any situation. We’ll get to work immediately, providing you with the qualified help you deserve. Our commitment to delivering unparalleled service and results has transformed the tax industry and earned us numerous honors for exemplary corporate citizenship, ethics, and workplace culture.

Our Mission:

Optima Tax is a very diverse team, with our staff coming from many different countries, cultures and backgrounds. But the one thing all “Optimians” (as we fondly call each other) share is our mission: to help people achieve a better financial future by assisting them with their tax needs.

Our Core Competencies:

  • Tax Preparation & Extensions
  • Filing Returns for Unified Years
  • IRS Audit
  • IRS ‘Fresh Start’ Qualification Assistance
  • Business & Personal Taxes
OT About BBB

Optima is A+ Accredited with the Better Business Bureau.

Our Legal Team

OT team Kristen Bemis
Kristen Bemis
General Counsel
Kristen Bemis has 10 years of legal experience advising both public and financial companies regarding regulatory and compliance issues. She helps to make sure Optima adheres to the highest standards and maintains best practices within the industry. She is a licensed attorney in both the states of California and Nevada. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of San Diego and a Juris Doctorate from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law.
OT team Philip Hwang
Philip Hwang
Lead Attorney
Philip Hwang is dedicated to delivering excellent representation and legal advice with regard to legal tax issues. He has a wide range of experience in tax law ranging from working at the South Brooklyn Low Income Tax Clinic to providing audit defense and international tax planning for multinational corporations. Philip earned his Juris Doctorate degree from Hofstra University School of Law with a concentration in Taxation Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley. He is admitted to practice law in California as a member of the California State Bar.
OT team Jennifer Wei
Jenny Wei
Tax Attorney
Jenny Wei is passionate about helping businesses and individuals with their tax issues. She has a history of helping families in need with volunteer programs. She participated in the Low Income Tax Clinic and was an auditor for the State of California. Jenny takes pride in defending taxpayer rights. She holds a degree in Accounting, Business Administration, and in Psychology. She is a member of the American Bar Association and the State Bar of California.
OT team Michael Wenkart
Michael Wenkart
Tax Attorney
Michael Wenkart graduated from Chapman University with a B.S. in Business Administration as well as a J.D. and LL.M. in taxation from the University of San Diego. He has experience in tax preparation, researching complex tax issues especially international tax issues including inversions. As a member of the RO team at Optima, his focus now is assisting clients to navigate and defend against the aggressive tactics of the IRS’s revenue officers.
OT team Carlos Maggi
Carlos Maggi
Tax Attorney
Carlos Maggi earned his Juris Doctorate degree from Whittier Law School with a concentration in Business Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is admitted to practice law in California as a member of the California State Bar and is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (Taxation Section) as well as the Beverly Hills Bar Association (Taxation Section).
OT team Negar Taghilou
Negar Taghilou Cox
Tax Attorney
Negar is dedicated to deliver excellent results for her clients. She brings with her several years of tax experience dealing with Offers in Compromise, Collection Due Process Hearings, Appeals, and advance representation involving personal and business matters. She earned her Bachelor degree in Business Administration and an MBA from the University of Phoenix. Negar also has an LL.M degree in Taxation/International Taxation & Offshore Planning from Saint Thomas University School of Law. She is admitted to practice before United States Tax Court and the Supreme Court of the State of Michigan.

Our Founders

OT team Harry Langenberg
Harry Langenberg
Co-founder, Managing Partner

Harry Langenberg, has over 10 years of financial services experience, including investment banking for technology-based firms at Merrill Lynch & Co. in San Francisco, CA. He is a graduate of both the Wharton Business School and the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania.

OT team Jesse Stockwell
Jesse Stockwell
Co-founder, Managing Partner

Jesse Stockwell has spent the majority of his career in consumer finance where he’s founded multiple successful firms that help individuals in need of financial guidance. He helps to set Optima’s strategic objectives and has previously held positions in investment banking with Prudential Securities. He’s a graduate of the Wharton Business School.

Our Management Team

OT team David King
David King
CEO
David King brings with him 12 years of experience in growing and running financial services firms. With an emphasis on customer service, he has helped to facilitate Optima’s “Client Comes First” approach at Optima. Prior to joining Optima, David held a leadership role at Secured Funding where he pioneered many of their best practices for sales management in the mortgage industry.
OT team Jarrod Bassin
Jarrod Bassin
Executive VP & COO
Jarrod Bassin’s career spans nearly 17 years in consumer and real estate finance. Focused on optimizing the delivery of our services, he works toward the continued advancement of our systems and processes to ensure the best possible customer experience.
OT team Christine Bui
Christine Bui
SVP of Client Care & Financing
Christine Bui leads the Client Care & Financing Departments at Optima, where crunching numbers is her passion. She brings 10 years of financial services experience and was an Escrow Manager prior to joining the Optima Team. She graduated with a degree in Business Administration emphasizing in Management Information Systems.
OT team Kevin Giordano
Kevin Giordano
SVP of Servicing
Kevin Giordano leads servicing operations at Optima. Kevin has 10 years of experience developing financial service firms. He is dedicated to and passionate about helping taxpayers.
OT team Alex Eden
Alex Edens
VP, Corporate Partnership & Brand Ambassador
Alex Edens has been in the financial services industry since 1998 and has been a proud member of the Optima family since inception. Having held titles as a bank officer, finance consultant and later progressing to management positions in the finance industry, Alex has had the opportunity to work with clients in a wide array of financial situations.
OT team Art Fedich
Art Fedich
SVP, Marketing
Art Fedich brings 15+ years of internet marketing experience in SEO, SEM, content, affiliate, social media, and email marketing to the Optima team. He works closely with the managing partners as well as the senior management in all departments to ensure Optima’s “Client Comes First” approach is paramount in all marketing initiatives.

Let Optima be your guiding light when dealing with the IRS.