Tom Rust

About Tom Rust

Senior lawyer and government leader with substantial experience in conducting complex investigations, building and leading strong ethics and compliance teams, coordinating strategic communications, and counseling senior officials. Demonstrated history of managing risk, collaborating with stakeholders and building consensus, navigating crises, and using data and technology to identify issues and drive solutions.

Experience

1. Chief Counsel and Staff Director

   U.S. House Of Representatives

   Mar 2014 — Present

   Lead and manage the staff of 25 lawyers and other professionals responsible for the ethics function of the U.S. House of Representatives.Conduct investigations involving Members of Congress and their staff, with regard to conflicts of interest, harassment and discrimination, misuse of funds, gifts and bribery, insider-trading, campaign finance, and improper disclosure of classified information.Engage with whistleblowers, manage confidentiality concerns, and develop complaint response policies. Coordinate with prosecutors and inspectors general on behalf of the Committee. Navigate crises and communicate with senior U.S. House leadership, Members, and staff on time-sensitive issues. Counsel Committee Members on investigations and appropriate resolutions. Advise and provide guidance and resources for House Member working groups and task forces seeking to revise ethics rules. Train, oversee and guide team of 12 professionals giving a high volume of ethics and compliance advice on a continuing basis for Members of Congress and staff, including upon election of new Members, employment and exit of Members and staff, and the convening of each Congress. Oversee the House financial disclosure program and drive improvements to the electronic filing system.Implement the ethics training program for all 435 Members and more than employees. Representative Accomplishments- Reduced Committee’s investigative backlog by 75% through effective and efficient management of hundreds of investigations- Planned and engaged in over two hundred formal congressional hearings and business meetings- Oversaw complete re-imagining of ethics training program to be more engaging, interactive, and effective- Coordinated procurement of new workflow management system and implementation of new processes to improve efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of ethics advice- Created new Office of Financial Disclosure to improve compliance with statutory requirements.

Education

• University of Virginia School of Law

  JD, Law

  1998 — 2001

• University of Virginia

  BA, Government and History

  1993 — 1998