MICHAEL MISSAL, a member of the management committee at K&L Gates and leader of the firm’s policy and regulatory practice in Washington, D.C., was nominated this month by the Obama administration to serve as inspector general for the embattled U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
The U.S. Senate must approve Missal’s nomination in order for him to move forward with his new position, which would effectively see him serve as the top watchdog at the VA, a governmental body beset by an array of problems in recent years. Missal, who has been a contributor to Obama’s presidential campaigns, previously served as a bankruptcy examiner for busted leading subprime mortgage lender New Century and helped conduct an internal investigation at CBS News into a controversial report by longtime newsman Dan Rather.
