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DOJ-007 — Independent Investigative Counsel Shared-Framework Implementation Act (Preferred)

This is DOJ-007's preferred implementing legislation. It operates only after ratification of the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment and enactment of the Interbranch Review Framework Act (JUD-011). It adds a separately firewalled Investigative Counsel component to JUD-011's existing Article III structure and reuses its roster, clerk, facilities, security, technology, judgeships, and nondecisional administration.

If Congress rejects the Interbranch Review Framework Act (JUD-011), it may instead ratify the same amendment and enact the standalone Independent Investigative Counsel Appointment and Accountability Act. That independent alternative does not rely on JUD-011.

A BILL

To implement the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment through a separately firewalled component of the Interbranch Review Division, to provide for appointment, authority, independence, accountability, funding, and termination of independent investigative counsel in extraordinary cases of executive conflict, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Independent Investigative Counsel Shared-Framework Implementation Act.”

SEC. 2. PURPOSES AND ENACTMENT STRUCTURE.

The purposes of this Act are to—

  1. ensure that credible allegations involving the President or senior executive officials cannot be suppressed because the subjects control the ordinary investigative chain;
  2. implement the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment through a judicial component constitutionally authorized to appoint and protect an inferior investigative officer;
  3. avoid a duplicative judicial roster, clerk, secure-record system, technology platform, facilities program, and judicial-capacity appropriation by using the infrastructure created by JUD-011;
  4. preserve complete separation between civil anti-nullification adjudication, investigative-counsel appointment and protection, investigative merits, and any resulting criminal case;
  5. preserve evidence and congressional access during presidential tenure while preserving impeachment as the constitutional mechanism for removal of a sitting President; and
  6. permit lawful prosecution of persons other than a sitting President while respecting applicable immunity and criminal-procedure protections.

This Act is a preferred implementation package with JUD-011 and does not incorporate, activate, or depend on the standalone DOJ-007 alternative.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

  1. Covered official includes the President, Vice President, Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, Solicitor General, FBI Director or Deputy Director, White House Counsel, Cabinet officers, senior Executive Office personnel, senior DOJ political appointees, and persons whose investigation presents a substantial conflict for executive leadership.
  2. Credible information means specific and articulable information providing a reasonable basis to believe that a federal offense, obstruction, retaliation, evidence destruction, concealment, unlawful interference with federal law enforcement, or serious abuse of investigative or prosecutorial authority may have occurred.
  3. Extraordinary executive conflict means an actual or objectively reasonable conflict materially impairing DOJ's capacity or perceived capacity to investigate impartially.
  4. Investigative Counsel Panel means a panel assigned under section 2311 of title 28, United States Code, as added by section 4.
  5. Independent Investigative Counsel means the inferior officer appointed under this Act and the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment.

SEC. 4. INVESTIGATIVE COUNSEL COMPONENT OF THE INTERBRANCH REVIEW DIVISION.

(a) Table of sections.

The table of sections for chapter 156 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to section 2310 the following:

“2311. Investigative Counsel component and panels.”.

(b) Component.

Chapter 156 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding after section 2310 the following:

Ҥ 2311. Investigative Counsel component and panels

“(a) Establishment.—There is established within the Interbranch Review Division an Investigative Counsel component to perform only the appointment, jurisdiction, notice, access, removal, discipline, and completion functions expressly conferred by the Independent Investigative Counsel Shared-Framework Implementation Act.

“(b) Constitutional source.—The authority of the component arises from the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment and the implementing Act, not from the civil cause of action under section 2303. An application under the implementing Act is not a civil action under section 2303 and need not satisfy that section's standing or anti-nullification elements.

“(c) Shared roster and composition.—An Investigative Counsel Panel shall be selected randomly from the national roster established under section 2304(c) and shall consist of—

“(1) one judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia;

“(2) one circuit judge from a circuit other than the District of Columbia Circuit; and

“(3) one district judge from a district outside the District of Columbia and from a circuit different from the circuit of the judge selected under paragraph (2).

“(d) Assignment and replacement.—The clerk shall use the neutral random-assignment and recusal-replacement procedures prescribed under section 2310. No officer may select a judge for a particular application based on anticipated outcome, appointing authority, political affiliation, or views concerning the subject or alleged conduct.

“(e) Civil-proceeding disqualification.—A judge or decisional employee who participates in a civil proceeding concerning the same underlying conduct may not participate in an application, appointment, jurisdiction, access dispute, removal matter, discipline matter, or completion determination under the implementing Act. A judge serving under this section may not participate in a related Civil Compliance panel or in appellate review of a related civil proceeding.

“(f) Criminal-case disqualification.—A judge or decisional employee serving under this section may not participate in a criminal case or appeal arising from an appointment made under the implementing Act.

“(g) Limited panel authority.—An Investigative Counsel Panel may determine whether appointment conditions exist; appoint counsel; define or modify jurisdiction; receive required notices; adjudicate removal and discipline; resolve matters expressly assigned by the implementing Act; and determine completion. It may not direct investigative steps, charging decisions, plea negotiations, litigation strategy, sentencing positions, or good-faith departures from nonbinding Department of Justice policy.

“(h) Shared nondecisional administration.—The clerk and Administrative Office support authorized by section 2310 may provide facilities, technology, cybersecurity, secure-information capability, procurement, financial administration, personnel administration, and other nondecisional support to the component.

“(i) Decisional and information firewall.—The component shall maintain separately assigned decisional personnel, dockets, access permissions, deliberative records, sealed materials, grand-jury material, and investigative information. Shared administration does not authorize a Civil Compliance panel, civil party, or unrelated employee to obtain protected information or direct a function under the implementing Act.

“(j) Separate access judge.—A privilege, classification, compulsory-process, or agency-access dispute requiring judicial adjudication shall be assigned randomly to an otherwise unassigned Article III judge who has not participated in a related Civil Compliance proceeding, Investigative Counsel Panel, or resulting criminal case.

“(k) No transfer of authority.—A civil finding, referral, notice, preservation order, or public-register entry, including one issued or maintained under JUD-001 or JUD-005, does not establish criminal liability, probable cause, corrupt intent, impeachability, extraordinary executive conflict, or entitlement to appointment. It may be submitted as supporting material only when an authorized applicant independently alleges every condition required by the implementing Act. A determination under the implementing Act does not resolve a civil claim under section 2303.”.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZED APPLICATIONS AND REFERRALS.

A verified sealed application may be submitted by the Attorney General or Deputy Attorney General; an Inspector General with related jurisdiction; the Director of the Office of Government Ethics; either House by resolution; either Judiciary Committee by majority vote; a bipartisan one-third minority of either Judiciary Committee; or an Article III court making a qualifying referral.

A court may refer a matter when it has found executive conduct unlawful, the record contains substantial and credible information of a possible federal offense, related obstruction, retaliation, evidence destruction, concealment, or serious misuse of federal investigative authority, and an extraordinary executive conflict may impair ordinary investigation. A notice or public-register entry under JUD-001 or JUD-005 does not itself satisfy these conditions. The referring judge and decisional employees are disqualified under section 2311(e). A referral is not a finding of guilt, probable cause, corrupt intent, impeachability, or entitlement to appointment and is not admissible to prove an offense.

Private persons may submit information to an authorized applicant but may not petition the Investigative Counsel Panel directly.

SEC. 6. APPOINTMENT STANDARD.

The Investigative Counsel Panel shall appoint counsel only upon written findings that—

  1. credible information indicates a possible federal offense, related obstruction, retaliation, evidence destruction, or serious abuse of investigative or prosecutorial authority;
  2. the matter concerns a covered official or presents extraordinary executive conflict;
  3. ordinary recusal or reassignment is inadequate; and
  4. appointment is necessary and proportionate.

Submission by an authorized applicant does not create entitlement to appointment. The panel shall independently review the application and may deny appointment if the statutory conditions are not satisfied, lesser measures are adequate, or appointment would be unnecessary or disproportionate.

The appointment order shall identify the subject matter, jurisdiction, institutional conflict, powers conferred, reporting requirements, and reasons lesser measures are inadequate. Public and sealed versions shall be issued consistent with investigative integrity, grand-jury secrecy, classification, and individual rights.

SEC. 7. QUALIFICATIONS, APPOINTMENT, AND TERM.

Counsel shall be a United States citizen and attorney in good standing with substantial federal criminal, judicial, or complex-litigation experience; demonstrated independence and integrity; no material conflict; and no recent representation or senior political service for a principal subject.

Selection shall be merit-based. Counsel shall take the constitutional oath and serve until completion or lawful termination. Appointment under this Act is an alternative to, not a replacement for, lawful executive appointment of special counsel.

SEC. 8. JURISDICTION.

Jurisdiction includes the matters identified in the appointment order; federal offenses arising from the same course of conduct; obstruction, retaliation, false statements, witness tampering, evidence destruction, and concealment affecting the investigation; persons who aid or conspire in such conduct; and serious use or attempted use of federal investigative or prosecutorial authority without a good-faith lawful factual predicate or for a retaliatory, protective, personal, electoral, partisan, or other improper case-specific purpose.

Covered misuse may include seeking investigation or prosecution of an opponent for an improper purpose; seeking protection, dismissal, leniency, or nonenforcement for an ally; obtaining confidential investigative information for personal or political use; manipulating staffing, jurisdiction, resources, or timing to obtain a desired result; directing materially false representations; or retaliating against resistance to such conduct.

Material expansion requires Investigative Counsel Panel approval limited to connectedness and continuing necessity arising from the executive conflict. The panel shall not review investigative merits.

SEC. 9. POWERS AND LIMITATIONS.

(a) Investigative authority.

Within assigned jurisdiction, counsel may conduct grand-jury proceedings; seek subpoenas, warrants, immunity orders, and other lawful process; interview witnesses and subjects; litigate privilege, classification, immunity, and access disputes; preserve evidence; appoint and supervise staff; request agency assistance; and exercise authority necessary to complete the investigation.

(b) Other persons.

Counsel may initiate, decline, dismiss, negotiate, try, and appeal criminal cases against persons other than a sitting President when those persons fall within assigned jurisdiction.

(c) Sitting President.

Counsel may investigate a sitting President, collect and preserve evidence, use grand-jury process, investigate obstruction or retaliation, and transmit substantial and credible information to Congress. A sitting President may not be indicted or tried under this Act while holding office. This prohibition does not prevent investigation, evidence preservation, lawful process appropriately tailored to official duties, reporting to Congress, or prosecution after the President leaves office if otherwise lawful.

(d) Immune official conduct.

Counsel may investigate conduct protected from criminal prosecution by presidential immunity when necessary to establish facts, preserve evidence, identify acts of nonimmune participants, inform impeachment or legislative oversight, or recommend institutional safeguards. Counsel shall distinguish factual findings from criminal conclusions and shall not characterize immunity itself as evidence of wrongdoing.

(e) DOJ rules and policies.

Counsel shall ordinarily comply with generally applicable DOJ rules and policies. Counsel may depart from a nonstatutory rule for specified good cause when compliance would impair independence, reflect the underlying conflict, frustrate the appointment, or be materially unsuitable. Counsel shall provide sealed written notice before departure or as soon afterward as practicable. Notice does not require panel approval; the panel may preserve it and consider knowing material abuse in removal proceedings but may not countermand the policy judgment.

SEC. 10. PERSONNEL, RECORDS, AND ASSISTANCE.

Counsel may employ sufficient independent personnel to avoid effective dependence on an agency controlled by a subject. Federal agencies shall provide reasonably necessary personnel, records, facilities, and technical assistance subject to lawful privilege and judicial process.

Detailed personnel may not be removed, reassigned, disciplined, denied access, or adversely treated because of lawful service. Access disputes shall receive expedited adjudication by the separate judge required by section 2311(j) of title 28, United States Code. Classification alone does not authorize denial of access, though lawful security procedures remain applicable.

SEC. 11. INDEPENDENCE AND ANTI-EVASION.

No federal officer or employee may knowingly obstruct or materially impede counsel; conceal, destroy, alter, or withhold evidence; deny lawful assistance; retaliate against witnesses or personnel; or use classification, funding, reassignment, removal, privilege, or administrative control to frustrate the investigation.

Counsel shall notify the Investigative Counsel Panel and appropriate congressional committees of substantial interference, subject to lawful delay protecting an active investigation, grand jury, national security, or individual rights.

SEC. 12. REMOVAL AND DISCIPLINE.

The President and executive officers may not remove, suspend, demote, reassign, or materially restrict counsel. A sealed removal petition may be filed by the Attorney General, DOJ Inspector General, Chief Judge of the D.C. Circuit, either Judiciary Committee by majority vote, or the Investigative Counsel Panel based on substantial and credible information.

Removal requires incapacity, serious misconduct, knowing material jurisdictional violation, substantial dereliction, disqualifying conviction, knowing material abuse of policy-departure authority, or another condition incompatible with office integrity. Disagreement with investigative judgment, reporting, lawful prosecution of another person, or a good-faith policy departure is not cause.

Counsel shall receive notice, an opportunity to respond, and an evidentiary hearing where facts are disputed. Review by the Supreme Court of a final removal decision shall be expedited.

SEC. 13. SHARED ADMINISTRATION AND FUNDING.

(a) Shared judicial administration.

Amounts appropriated under section 6 of the Interbranch Review Framework Act may be used for the incremental roster, panel, clerk, facilities, technology, cybersecurity, secure-record, personnel-administration, procurement, financial-administration, reporting, and other nondecisional judicial costs of this Act, notwithstanding section 6(d) of that Act. No duplicate clerk, judicial roster, facilities program, technology platform, or general judicial-administration office shall be established under this Act.

(b) Investigative operations.

There are authorized to be appropriated such additional sums as may be necessary for counsel, investigative personnel, litigation, experts, travel, security, records, and other investigation-specific operations. Amounts appropriated for those purposes shall be separately accounted for and may not be used for civil adjudication under section 2303 of title 28, United States Code.

(c) Protection.

An executive officer may not withhold, condition, defer, transfer, or impound amounts made available for this Act except as expressly authorized by a later Act of Congress. The Administrative Office shall administer shared judicial expenses. Counsel shall administer investigation-specific expenses subject to lawful financial controls.

(d) Audit and reporting.

The Comptroller General shall audit legality, internal controls, procurement, security compliance, and financial administration without examining judicial deliberations, grand-jury material, litigation strategy, or investigative merits. The Administrative Office shall identify incremental shared-framework costs separately in the annual report required by JUD-011.

SEC. 14. REPORTING AND IMPEACHMENT INFORMATION.

Counsel shall provide periodic administrative reports that protect grand-jury secrecy, classified information, fair-trial rights, and uncharged persons.

When substantial and credible information indicates presidential conduct potentially relevant to impeachment, counsel shall transmit a confidential report and supporting material to the House Judiciary Committee. The report shall distinguish judicial findings, possible criminal evidence, immune official conduct, evidence bearing on intent or abuse, conduct of other participants, and unresolved questions.

When an investigation reveals a serious institutional weakness without necessarily establishing criminal liability, counsel may transmit a confidential legislative-oversight report to the appropriate committees. The House retains exclusive authority to determine whether impeachment is warranted, and Congress need not await completion of an investigation.

A supervising district court may authorize disclosure of grand-jury material to the House Judiciary Committee when legally permissible and necessary to its constitutional function. At completion, counsel shall issue a report with a public version subject to lawful redaction and judicial resolution of disputes by a judge outside the Investigative Counsel Panel and any related Civil Compliance panel.

SEC. 15. LIMITATIONS PERIODS.

For an offense within assigned jurisdiction allegedly committed by a sitting President, any otherwise applicable limitation period shall be suspended during presidential tenure and for 180 days thereafter, to the maximum extent permitted by the Constitution. Tolling preserves later accountability and does not authorize indictment or trial while the President remains in office.

SEC. 16. COMPLETION AND TERMINATION.

Counsel shall notify the Investigative Counsel Panel when assigned matters are complete or lawfully transferred. The panel may terminate only when no substantial work remains, continued appointment is unnecessary to address the conflict, or no lawful jurisdiction remains. It may not terminate because it disagrees with pace, theory, investigative judgment, prosecution of another person, reporting, or policy departure.

Records shall be transferred to the National Archives under secure procedures preserving secrecy, classification, lawful congressional access, and future judicial process. Civil Compliance personnel shall not receive access by reason of shared administration.

SEC. 17. JUDICIAL AND APPELLATE REVIEW.

Courts shall expedite actions concerning constitutionality, authority, access, removal, and enforcement. A mere subject or target may not ordinarily obtain interlocutory review before a judicially reviewable action. A criminal defendant retains all constitutional and statutory challenges in the resulting proceeding.

Supreme Court review of a final removal decision shall remain expedited as provided in section 12. Review in a resulting criminal case shall proceed under otherwise applicable law. Section 2309 of title 28, United States Code, governs only Civil Compliance proceedings and does not route a criminal case or investigative-counsel matter through the D.C. Circuit.

SEC. 18. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

Nothing in this Act—

  1. authorizes judicial prosecution or permits a Civil Compliance panel, Congress, or another court to direct a particular investigative or prosecutorial decision;
  2. converts a civil finding or referral into evidence of guilt, probable cause, corrupt intent, or impeachability;
  3. authorizes disclosure of protected civil or investigative records across components without lawful process;
  4. alters impeachment powers or makes investigation a condition precedent to impeachment;
  5. establishes that unlawful or immune conduct is automatically criminal or impeachable;
  6. prevents lawful executive appointment of another special counsel;
  7. diminishes defendants' rights, expands or abolishes substantive presidential immunity, or restricts the pardon power; or
  8. expands the civil cause of action, plaintiff categories, jurisdiction, or relief under section 2303 of title 28, United States Code.

SEC. 19. EFFECTIVE DATE, COORDINATION, AND SEVERABILITY.

This Act takes effect only after the Archivist certifies ratification of the Independent Investigative Counsel Amendment and chapter 156 of title 28, United States Code, is operational. It shall not impose retroactive substantive criminal liability.

The Judicial Conference shall issue conforming administrative rules not later than 180 days after both predicates are satisfied. Those rules may coordinate nondecisional administration but may not merge jurisdiction, panels, decisional personnel, dockets, protected records, or appellate routes.

This Act does not enact or incorporate the standalone DOJ-007 alternative. If JUD-011 is not enacted or chapter 156 is unavailable, Congress may separately enact the standalone alternative; this Act does not create a duplicate fallback tribunal.

Invalidity of one provision does not affect the remainder, except that no appointment may occur without the constitutional amendment and a lawfully operating Investigative Counsel Panel.

Budgetary Impact Statement

Preferred shared-framework path.

This Act avoids duplicating JUD-011's two additional D.D.C. judgeships, national roster, clerk, facilities, technology, cybersecurity, secure-record, procurement, and general administrative capacity. JUD-011's base appropriation may cover incremental judicial administration after express authorization by this Act. Investigation-specific counsel, personnel, litigation, experts, travel, security, and records costs require additional separately accounted appropriations. No dollar estimate is assigned pending AOUSC, CBO, GAO, appropriations, PAYGO, and legislative-counsel review.

Note: Preliminary ARRP assessment only; not a CBO, OMB, agency, or legislative-counsel score.

Drafting Notes

  • This is the preferred enabling Act because it uses one Interbranch Review Division and one national judicial infrastructure while preserving separate civil and investigative components.
  • The shared-framework arrangement is administrative, not decisional. A Civil Compliance panel cannot appoint, supervise, remove, or obtain records from counsel.
  • The constitutional amendment is the source of authority for nonexecutive appointment and protection; JUD-011 alone cannot create that authority.
  • The standalone DOJ-007 Act remains a complete independent alternative and is not a fallback provision within this bill.
  • A JUD-001 or JUD-005 notice can preserve and route an authenticated judicial finding, but DOJ-007 appointment still requires an authorized application, credible possible serious misconduct, extraordinary executive conflict, and independent panel findings.
  • IMM-001 separately addresses substantive presidential immunity.

Source Notes