Board of Advisors

Thomas G. Paese
Esquire
Klett Rooney Lieber & Schorling

Thomas G. Paese, former Pennsylvania Secretary of Administration under Governor Tom Ridge, is a shareholder in the Harrisburg office of Klett Rooney Lieber & Schorling.

Mr. Paese concentrates his practice in administrative law and government affairs, technology and healthcare.

Milestones:

• Mr. Paese was named Pennsylvania Secretary of Administration in 1994.
• He spearheaded formulation of Governor Ridge's tobacco settlement spending plan and during his tenure, also oversaw numerous important technology successes, including the consolidation of data centers for 17 state agencies which provided faster access to new technology and saved millions of dollars.
• He led the development of a technologically-advanced public safety radio network for state agencies, the establishment of new telecommunications services for state government, and the introduction of innovative enterprise resource-planning software to dramatically enhance state agencies' core business functions.
• He oversaw management of the innovative planning for theY2K revisions to state agencies' computer resources, successfully protecting government databases from Year 2000 malfunctions.
• As chief human resources officer for state government, he also established strong labor-management cooperation and good union relationships, highlighted by no strikes during his tenure.
• He also was chairman of the Pennsylvania Employees Benefit Trust Fund, which administers the $550 million spent yearly on health care for state employees and retirees.
• He was appointed by Governor Ridge to the Board of Trustees of the Pennsylvania State University and was a board member of Team Pennsylvania Foundation and Team Pennsylvania.

Mr. Paese has extensive experience in venture and general investing as a result of his service on the boards of the Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS) and the State Employees Retirement System (SERS). At the request of Governor Ridge, he will continue to serve on both boards.

Mr. Paese previously operated a law and healthcare consulting practice in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Earlier, he was vice president and general counsel of NovaCare, a national leader in rehabilitation services. NovaCare acquired Rehab Systems Company (RSC), which Paese co-founded in 1987. In only four years, RSC had grown to approximately 1,250 employees, with gross revenues of $100 million. Earlier, he was corporate counsel for Rehab Hospital Services Corporation, a division of National Medical Enterprises.

Mr. Paese received a B.A. in government and international relations from the University of Notre Dame where he graduated with honors. He received his J.D. from Dickinson School of Law and participated in the school's summer session in Florence, Italy. While at Dickinson, he was captain of the National Trial Lawyers Moot Court Team, which became regional champions. He received the American College of Trial Lawyers-Lewis F. Powell Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy and was a member of the Order of Barristers. While working for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, he also participated in Harvard University's Executive Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Mr. Paese is admitted to practice before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the American, Pennsylvania, and Dauphin County Bar Associations, the National Health Lawyer Association and the American Hospital Association. He is a founding board member of Legacy Bank of Harrisburg.