Eric Bonnett, Attorney

Eric’s practice encompasses a broad range of tax-related practice areas, focusing on estate and wealth planning and income taxation. In the tax arena, Eric provides compliance advice for a variety of entities and counsels on issues at both the federal and local levels. With respect to estate and wealth planning matters, Eric works with his clients to achieve their individual needs, with an emphasis on assisting clients with wealth preservation and furthering philanthropic goals.

Prior to joining The Busch Firm, Eric worked as a tax controversy attorney for a Big 4 accounting firm, specializing in tax issues for Fortune 500 Companies.

Greg Busch, CPA

Greg’s practice has focused on tax compliance for more than 35 years, including tax return preparation and planning for high-net worth individuals, as well as corporations, partnerships LLCs and foundations. Greg also assists taxpayers in the area of federal and state tax audits.

Timothy R. Busch, Founder

Tim has been a practicing attorney and CPA for nearly 40 years and is the Founder of The Busch Firm. He is also the Founder and CEO of Pacific Hospitality Group, a premier hotel development and management company with a portfolio of hotels and resorts located throughout the United States. His original business is Busch’s Markets, specialty grocery stores operating in Southeastern Michigan.

In 1992, Tim and his wife Steph co-founded St. Anne School in Laguna Niguel, California, where Tim served as Chairman and CEO for 17 years. St. Anne, now a private Roman Catholic school under the Diocese of Orange, has grown from its humble beginnings with 140 students to over 1,000 students today. Their son, Garrett, graduated from St. Anne in 2001 and their daughter, Mackenzie, graduated in 2004.

To continue the tradition of spreading Catholic education, they also co-founded JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, California. JSerra opened in September 2003 with 160 students and now enjoys an enrollment of over 1,125 students and will educate 1,350 students when fully developed.

Tim’s passion for wine led him to found Trinitas Cellars, LLC in 2002, located in Napa, California. Tim, along with Steph, is also an active supporter of several prominent Catholic organizations and was instrumental in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange purchasing the Crystal Cathedral.

Sheila Muldoon, Shareholder

Sheila’s practice centers around real estate acquisitions and sales, commercial financing, commercial leasing, and general business, including the formation of business entities (corporations, limited liability companies, general and limited partnerships), and the purchase and sale of businesses and their assets. Sheila also has experience counseling borrowers (including private schools) on taxable and tax-exempt bond financing.

Sheila has been lead counsel on numerous hospitality-related transactions, including asset sales, acquisitions, and financings. Sheila’s varied legal career includes working in-house in the Real Estate Division of the FDIC and as general counsel of a publicly traded assisted living company. She also was a partner in the San Diego law firm of Higgs Fletcher & Mack.

John Peiffer, CEO/Shareholder

John’s practice focuses on counseling business owners and their families on succession and charitable planning through irrevocable trusts, charitable trusts, family limited partnerships and LLCs, private foundations, supporting organizations, and other structures designed to accomplish clients’ estate planning and philanthropic goals. John also regularly advises for-profit and nonprofit clients on business transactions, entity structures, and corporate formation and governance, including having worked with a number of significant charitable organizations on tax and corporate matters. John has advised several Catholic dioceses, religious orders, and other religious institutions on mission-focused corporate restructuring and governance.

John’s varied legal experience also includes advising on global equity compensation and related employee incentive programs both as to plan design and compliance as well as in the M&A context, having previously been a senior associate in Baker & McKenzie, LLP’s compensation, employment, and labor practice.

John is also President and General Counsel of the Napa Legal Institute.

Cheryl Poole, CPA

Cheryl has over 25 years of experience and her practice focuses on tax return preparation for individuals, partnerships, corporations, trusts, and nonprofits, as well as researching unusual tax matters.

Before joining The Busch Firm, Cheryl worked as a CPA at Pollaro & Associates.

Anthony Zand, Of Counsel


Tony is of counsel to the Firm and serves as general counsel for Pacific Hospitality Group and its affiliates. He oversees all aspects of the company’s legal affairs including corporate governance, litigation, development, acquisitions and dispositions, franchising, financing, real estate, securities, employment, compliance, insurance, risk management, dispute resolution, and other day-to-day issues impacting PHG’s hotels and operations.