Attorney General Herring appoints panel to identify reforms, efficiencies in office

Attorney General Mark Herring announced the creation of a three-member review panel charged with identifying reforms and efficiencies within the Office of the Attorney General that advance his priority of delivering high-quality, timely, and cost-effective legal work to the people of Virginia and their state government.

The primary goal of the panel will be to ensure that the Office of the Attorney General is operated in a manner befitting a modern, major law firm representing the interests of the people of Virginia.

“In my first few weeks in office, I have been amazed by the quality and quantity of legal work that is produced by the lawyers and staff in the Office of the Attorney General, but there are areas where we can improve, enhance or streamline our operations to safeguard taxpayers’ money and deliver an even better product,” said Attorney General Herring. “I am extremely appreciative that such well-qualified professionals have agreed to lead this evaluation process. The office and the citizens of Virginia will be well served by the wealth and diversity of experience they will contribute.”

The panel is composed of non-partisan individuals with expertise in managing large, complex organizations in the legal industry, the public sector, and the private sector:

• Bill Leighty, as chairman, managing principal of DecideSmart, former Chief of Staff to Governors Mark R. Warner and Timothy M. Kaine, and former director of the Virginia Retirement System. Leighty has extensive experience in government performance reviews and reforms, including service as special advisor to Governor Bob McDonnell’s Commission on Government Reform and Restructuring. Leighty will bring the perspective of the state agencies (clients) to this review.

• W. Taylor Reveley, III, president of the College of William & Mary, former dean of William and Mary Law School, and former managing partner of Hunton & Williams law firm. President Reveley will bring the perspective of the legal community to this review.

• Katherine Busser, Executive Vice President and Central Virginia Market President of Capital One, has extensive experience in operations, technology and risk management.  She has served the Commonwealth as the former Rector of Virginia State University  and currently serves on the VCU Health System and Virginia Early Childhood Foundation boards.  Ms. Busser will bring the perspective of efficient business governance and operations  to this review.

“I appreciate Attorney General Herring’s commitment to ensuring the people’s law firm operates as effectively and efficiently as possible,” said Leighty. “I look forward to serving on this panel alongside such eminently qualified professionals.”

The review panel will be empowered to review functions of the office to determine whether taxpayer dollars are being spent as efficiently as possible to deliver high-quality legal work and comply with the law and the highest standards of legal ethics and professionalism. This is expected to include, but will not be limited to, the budget and finances of the office, execution of the office’s duties and responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act and the Conflict of Interest Act, use of outside counsel and information technology infrastructure.

Over the coming months, the group will work on a volunteer basis and present recommendations as available for evaluation by the attorney general and implementation as appropriate.