Due diligence to an
appointee standard.

Past a background check

A database report will tell you what a vendor already packaged. Appointee-grade work asks who else is in the picture. Analysts build the network around a subject's identifiers and the historical record: people, entities, and accounts. That is where undisclosed affiliations and awkward ownership usually sit.

What the review looks for

• Beneficial ownership and control that the cap table does not show
• Litigation, judgments, and public disciplinary history
• Sanctions and related financial exposure
• Undisclosed affiliations and associational risk
• Reputational issues at the local, state, and federal level, including through public records and FOIA
• Geopolitical and market-entry context when the counterparty is not domestic

Where this standard comes from

The founder has conducted due diligence for the White House, for political appointees, and in two branches of the U.S. government, including vetting from political candidates through Senate-confirmed roles. Private-sector work includes pre-deal reviews of companies, investors, and principals for businesses and law firms. Those are categories. Named case studies are not published.

Credentials are on the founder section. Transaction and counterparty examples, anonymized, are under use cases.

Who commissions it

Litigation and investigations practices, white-collar counsel, family-office counsel, and deal teams. In Washington and in New York, the retaining firm usually wants the memo before a nomination, an investment, a hire, or a filing. Rook writes for that reader. The firm does not replace counsel's judgment and does not give a legal opinion on whether a person is fit for office.