Mr. Backhaus is the Senior Counsel - Nuclear at Vistra and is based in Washington, DC.  In that capacity, Mr. Backhaus is responsible for the company's nuclear-related legal matters including but not limited to nuclear plant licensing, regulatory compliance, government and internal investigations, enforcement, and spent fuel claims.   
Prior to joining Vistra, Mr. Backhaus was on the executive team of a designer of high temperature gas micro reactors and, before then, a nuclear energy regulatory and transactional attorney at several international law firms.  In that capacity, Mr. Backhaus advised foreign governments and foreign and domestic clients on various aspects of developing domestic nuclear power programs and related infrastructure, including vendor procurement, agreements for the construction, operation, and fueling of nuclear power units, and the protection of sensitive technical and corporate information. 
Mr. Backhaus is a technically-trained nuclear engineer and served as an officer on the USS FLORIDA, a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine.  He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School (JD), George Mason University (MA), the US Navy Nuclear Power Program, and the U.S. Naval Academy (BS).