After the expiration of the Ethics in Government Act in 1999, the Office of Independent Counsel was replaced with the office of Special Counsel, defined by regulation 28 CFR 600, which in turn is based on Congressional statute 28 USC 510. The appointment in 2003 of Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, regarding the investigation into the public naming of CIA spy Valerie Plame,[5] was based on 28 USC 510.
Regulation was followed in the appointment of Robert Mueller to investigate possible interference by the Russian government in the 2016 presidential election, which includes investigating possible criminal conspiracy between the Russian government and the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.[6] These were done pursuant to regulation 28 CFR 600.[7]
