As senior vice president and general counsel, Mr. Hausrath is responsible for all legal matters pertaining to Ashland Inc. He also oversees the environmental, health and safety, government relations, security, facilities management, real estate and aviation functions. Mr. Hausrath joined Ashland's Law Department in 1980. He was named vice president in 1998 and general counsel in 1999, at which time he joined Ashland's executive committee. In 2004, he was promoted to senior vice president, general counsel and secretary. In 2006, he relinquished the title of secretary, naming a new corporate secretary to succeed him in that capacity. He is also chairman of Ashland's Ethics and Compliance Committee and a member of the Operating Committee. Mr. Hausrath is a member of the American Corporate Counsel Association, American Bar Association, Ethics Officer Association, Kentucky Bar Association, and the Virginia State Bar. He serves on the Board of Advisors of the Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Ky. He received a B.S. in electrical engineering in 1974 from Virginia Tech. From 1974 to 1976, he was employed by DuPont in Richmond, Va., as a project engineer. He received his J.D. degree in 1979 from the University of Richmond Law School where he was a member of the Law Review. After graduation, he served as a law clerk for the Virginia Supreme Court.