United States Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel

The Office of Special Counsel was a prosecutorial unit within the United States Department of Justice that operated from 1978 until the expiration of its statutory authority on December 31, 1999. Created by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, the office enabled the appointment of an independent counsel—a lawyer outside the Department's ordinary chain of command—tasked with investigating and, when warranted, prosecuting allegations of misconduct by high‑level federal officials.

When the relevant provisions of the Act lapsed, the position was supplanted by the role of special counsel established under 28 CFR part 600. Those regulations—drafted in 1999 by then‑Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal—authorize the attorney general (or acting attorney general) to appoint a special counsel whenever a matter presents a conflict of interest for the Department or when an outside prosecutor would better serve the public interest.

Under the now‑defunct statute, an independent counsel was required—pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Template:Trim/Template:Trim § Template:Trim—to submit a comprehensive final report to the United States Congress explaining investigative findings and the rationale for any prosecutorial decisions.

History

Creation in response to Watergate (1978)

In the aftermath of the Watergate scandal—and the related Saturday Night Massacre—a Democratic‑led Congress sought stronger checks on executive power. The result was the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, which authorized a court‑appointed special prosecutor (renamed independent counsel in 1983) to investigate senior federal officials and national campaign figures outside the normal Department of Justice chain of command.

File:Oiclogo.jpg

Appointed by a three‑judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, an independent counsel received an unlimited budget, no statutory time limit, and could be removed only for "good cause" by the attorney general. Although designed to ensure impartiality, critics—most prominently Antonin Scalia in his lone dissent in Morrison v. Olson (1988)—argued that the post created a "fourth branch" unaccountable to the Constitution.

Notable independent‑counsel investigations (1983–1999)

• Iran–Contra (1987). Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh investigated clandestine arms sales to Iran and diversion of proceeds to Nicaraguan rebels.
• Wedtech / Edwin Meese III (1987). Inquiry into allegations that the attorney general had aided a defense contractor for personal gain.
• Madison Guaranty / Whitewater (1994). Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr's probe into Arkansas real‑estate dealings expanded, culminating in a referral that led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton by the United States House of Representatives (the Senate later acquitted him).
• Mike Espy gifts probe (1994). Under the 1994 reauthorization, Attorney General Janet Reno asked the court to appoint Donald Smaltz to investigate Agriculture Secretary Espy's acceptance of gifts from parties with business before the Department, with authority to pursue any related crimes uncovered.

The Act's authority lapsed on December 31, 1999, automatically terminating the office.

Transition to the special‑counsel model (1999–present)

Congress allowed the statute to expire, and the Department adopted 28 CFR part 600, drafted by then–Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal, to govern special counsel appointments.

• Valerie Plame leak (2003). Patrick Fitzgerald was named special counsel to investigate the public exposure of the CIA officer's identity.
• Russian–interference probe (2017–2019). Robert Mueller examined Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election and links to the Trump campaign.
• Crossfire Hurricane review (2020). Attorney General William Barr converted federal prosecutor John Durham's inquiry into a special‑counsel investigation of the FBI's 2016 counterintelligence probe.
• Trump‑related matters (2022). Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Jack Smith to oversee investigations into classified documents retained at Mar‑a‑Lago and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Today, the special‑counsel mechanism—rooted in 28 USC § 510 and implemented through part 600—remains the Department's primary tool for handling politically sensitive investigations that present a conflict of interest for its regular hierarchy.

Timeline

• October 26, 1978: The Ethics in Government Act is signed into law, establishing the Office of Independent Counsel.
• January 3, 1983: Congress passes amendments to refine the office's authority under the Ethics in Government Act Amendments of 1982 (96 Stat. 2039).
• December 15, 1987: The law is reauthorized for five more years under the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1987 (101 Stat. 1293).
• December 15, 1992: The statute lapses after Congress fails to pass a reauthorization bill.
• June 30, 1994: Congress reinstates the independent counsel provisions by passing the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1994 (PL 103–270).
• June 30, 1999: The reauthorization expires and Congress allows the statute to sunset.
• Late 1999: The Office of Independent Counsel is formally phased out. Its investigative function is replaced by the special counsel system defined under 28 CFR part 600.

Investigations carried out by independent counsel

Name		Start	End	Topic	Appointer
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Whiskey Ring	rowspan=2 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(President)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Star Route scandal	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(President)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Bribery at the United States Post Office Department	rowspan=2 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(President)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Oregon land fraud scandal	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Teapot Dome scandal	rowspan=2 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(President)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	DOJ corruption allegations	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Watergate scandal	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts		style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Acting Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts		style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts		style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Allegations of illegal drug use of Jimmy Carter's aide Hamilton Jordan	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	DC Circuit Court
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Carter business loans	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Allegations of illegal drug use of Jimmy Carter's aide Timothy Kraft	rowspan=14 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	DC Circuit Court
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Raymond Donovan's connections to organized crime
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Ed Meese financial improprieties
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Ted Olson obstruction of Congress's Superfund investigation
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Michael Deaver conflict of interest and lobbying
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Iran-Contra affair
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Lawrence Wallace's personal tax matters
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Wedtech scandal
Unknown		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Under seal
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Samuel Pierce's mismanagement and fraud of programs at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
Unknown		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Under seal
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Inslaw scandal	rowspan=3 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	House banking scandal
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Iraqgate
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Improper search of Bill Clinton's passport records by George H. W. Bush administration staff on behalf of his 1992 presidential reelection campaign	rowspan=2 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	DC Circuit Court
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Suicide of Vince Foster, the Whitewater scandal, Travelgate, Filegate, and later the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts		rowspan=9 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	DC Circuit Court
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
		Template:Dts	Template:Dts
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Allegations of corrupt gratuity by Mike Espy
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Henry Cisneros payments controversy
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Commerce Department trade mission controversy
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Eli Segal's conflicts of interest
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Bruce Babbitt and allegations of public corruption surrounding the Department of Interior's denial of a casino contract to an Indian Nation and the truth or falsity of testimony to a Senate Committee concerning the official conduct
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Charges of influence-peddling and the solicitation of illegal campaign contributions against Alexis Herman
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Waco siege	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Plame affair	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Deputy Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Investigation into possible interference by the Russian government in the 2016 presidential election, which include a possible criminal conspiracy between the Russian government and the presidential campaign of Donald Trump	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Deputy Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Counter-investigation of the origins of the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane probe	style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Donald Trump's attempts to delay the certification of the 2020 United States presidential election and his mishandling of files recovered during the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago	rowspan=3 style="background: Template:Party color;" |	(Attorney General)
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Investigation of the Joe Biden classified documents incident
style="background: Template:Party color;" |		Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Hunter Biden scandal

See also

• Mueller special counsel investigation

External links

• United States Office of the Independent Counsel Official
• Final Report of Independent Counsel Walsh (August 4, 1993)
• Final Report of the Independent Counsel (March 2002)
• Final Report of Independent Counsel Starr
• IC Starr's Referral Report to Congress (September 9, 1998)
• Report of Independent Counsel Smaltz (October 2001)
• NARA Archives of the Independent Counsels
• Report on the Death of Vincent W. Foster, Jr,/by the Office of Independent Counsel in Re Madison Guaranty Savings and Loan Association HATI Trust Digital Library, Universities of Michigan and Purdue, the complete 137 page, 2 vol. report with app., footnotes, and exhibits.