Economists Incorporated

What Economists Incorporated does

Economists Incorporated operates in the legal and economic consulting sector under the trade name "Secretariat," with its primary office in San Francisco, California. The firm was founded in 1981 and is a private, privately-held company (legal entity: Secretariat Advisors, LLC). It is described in the source material as an economic consulting firm in the fields of law and economics, public policy, and business strategy, with operations spanning expert witness testimony, economic advisory, damages calculations, forensic accounting, digital forensics, and international arbitration support.

The firm delivers its services through a globally integrated team of 700+ experts and advisors, organized across 17 distinct service categories (including Antitrust & Competition, Intellectual Property, M&A, Securities & Finance, Construction Quantum, International Arbitration, Forensic Accounting, and Digital Forensics & eDiscovery) and 12 industry verticals (including Automotive, Construction, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Technology, and Oil & Gas). It has completed more than 10,000 engagements across six continents and derives 80% of its engagements from Top 100 Global Law Firms. The firm publishes the periodic Economists Ink journal and maintains an AI Insights Hub, in addition to thought leadership on antitrust, AI-based discrimination, and market definition.

The revenue model is professional services-based, with quote-based engagements tied to matter complexity, expertise required, and scope of work, and billing on multi-year contract cadences typical of expert witness and litigation consulting work. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales: the firm is retained directly by law firms and corporations for high-stakes disputes, arbitrations, and regulatory matters. Selected client case outcomes include an $811 million award in a life sciences M&A dispute, a $577 million DOJ cryptocurrency fraud prosecution, and a $131 million recovery for Lockheed Martin in a dispute with the U.S. Air Force.

Name

Economists Incorporated

Legal name

Secretariat Advisors, LLC

Website

https://ei.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Economists Incorporated (d/b/a Secretariat) is a private economic consulting and litigation support firm providing expert witness testimony, damages analysis, forensic accounting, and arbitration services to top law firms, corporations, and government agencies across 12 industries and six continents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Expert Witness & Litigation Consulting

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Litigation Support & Expert Witness (Valuation-Related) (BPAHANAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Litigation & Dispute Valuation (damages, shareholder disputes) (FSAEAHAI), Audit & Assurance Services (BPAHABAA), Treasury, Capital Structure & Liquidity Advisory (BPAHADAM)

Keywords

• Economic consulting services
• Expert witness testimony
• Litigation consulting
• Forensic accounting services
• Damages valuation analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Expert Witness and Consulting Services: Professional services engagement model providing expert testimony, economic advisory, and litigation consulting to law firms and corporations involved in disputes, arbitrations, and regulatory matters.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Economists Incorporated (operating as Secretariat) is an independent expert services and litigation consulting firm providing expert witness testimony, economic advisory, damages calculations, forensic accounting, digital forensics, and specialized engineering analysis across 17 service categories including Antitrust & Competition, Intellectual Property, Mergers & Acquisitions, Securities & Finance, Construction Quantum, and International Arbitration. The firm serves law firms, corporations, and government agencies involved in high-stakes disputes, arbitrations, investigations, and regulatory matters through a global team of 700+ experts.

Product overview

Secretariat is an independent expert services and litigation consulting firm offering a comprehensive suite of professional services. The firm provides expert witness testimony, economic advisory, forensic accounting, digital forensics, and specialized engineering analysis across 17 distinct service categories including Antitrust & Competition, Intellectual Property, Mergers & Acquisitions, Securities & Finance, Construction Quantum, and International Arbitration. The firm serves 12 industry verticals and publishes "Economists Ink," a periodic thought leadership publication covering economics topics. The services are delivered through globally integrated expert teams comprising 700+ experts who have completed 10,000+ engagements on 6 continents.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Antitrust & Competition Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% of engagements are with Top 100 Global Law Firms
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cornerstone Research: Cornerstone Research is a direct competitor providing economic and financial expert witness services to law firms and corporations in antitrust, securities, IP, and class action litigation. Like Secretariat, it sells credentialed academics and industry experts as trial testimony, with overlapping service lines in damages quantification and forensic economics.
• NERA Economic Consulting: NERA Economic Consulting is a direct peer providing economics, finance, and accounting expert services for litigation, regulatory, and policy matters. Both firms compete on antitrust, IP, securities, and international arbitration mandates with highly credentialed economists as testifying experts.
• Analysis Group: Analysis Group is a direct competitor providing economic, financial, and statistical consulting for litigation and business strategy. It mirrors Secretariat's model of pairing academic experts with in-house analysts on antitrust, IP, and damages matters for law firm and corporate clients.
• Charles River Associates: Charles River Associates (CRA) is a direct peer offering economic and management consulting including expert testimony in antitrust, IP, and financial disputes. CRA competes with Secretariat on the same consulting economics mandates and serves many of the same Top 100 law firm clients.
• Brattle Group: Brattle Group is a direct peer providing economic and financial expert consulting for litigation, regulation, and business strategy, with strength in energy, finance, and antitrust. It competes directly with Secretariat for top-tier law firm engagements and arbitration mandates.
• Compass Lexecon: Compass Lexecon is a direct peer providing economic expert services in competition, antitrust, finance, and international arbitration. Both firms are ranked in the GAR Expert Witness Firms' Power Index and compete for the same cross-border arbitration and damages mandates.
• Berkeley Research Group: Berkeley Research Group (BRG) is a direct competitor providing expert witness and litigation consulting across antitrust, IP, construction, and forensic accounting matters. It overlaps with Secretariat on construction quantum, forensic accounting, and damages valuation engagements.

Broad incumbents

• FTI Consulting: FTI Consulting is a broad incumbent offering expert services, forensic accounting, and dispute advisory alongside larger corporate finance and restructuring practices. It competes with Secretariat on forensic, construction, and damages engagements as part of a much wider service portfolio.
• Alvarez & Marsal: Alvarez & Marsal is a broad incumbent with a disputes and investigations practice offering forensic accounting, expert witness, and damages valuation. It overlaps with Secretariat on forensic accounting and dispute advisory, though its core identity is restructuring and turnaround consulting.
• Deloitte (Forensic & Dispute Services): Deloitte's Forensic & Dispute Services practice provides expert witness, forensic accounting, and litigation consulting as part of its broader audit and advisory portfolio. It competes with Secretariat for large enterprise and government forensic engagements, though at a different scale and brand position.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/economists-incorporated

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Economists Incorporated