A court-appointed investigator had been able to hack into the trust fund accounting system at the department and manipulate the financial data.

Last fall, after Mr. Ickes's firm was cleared of any wrongdoing by a court-appointed investigator, his name quickly began circulating as health care czar.

Finally called to task for his contracts with Presley by a court-appointed investigator, Parker was eventually forced to relinquish any role in the estate.

A court-appointed investigator later cleared the firm of any wrongdoing, and Mr. Ickes came to Washington in January 1994, charged with leading the battle for health insurance legislation.

According to a court-appointed investigator, Mr. Burke and other union officials recruited "associate" union members who paid dues but did not receive full benefits.

The civil charges against Mr. Feinstein were brought in September by a court-appointed investigator, Charles Carberry.

Approximately a month later, he told a court-appointed investigator that the man was "About six foot, two maybe three . . . Maybe about 180, 200 pounds."

Otherwise, a court-appointed investigator, Kenneth Conboy, says he will seek authority to fill all carpenter jobs by merit.

The court-appointed investigator who has been seeking for more than three years to determine the finances of an Indian trust fund administered by the Interior Department resigned on Monday.

But Mr. Ickes was cleared of any wrongdoing last month by a court-appointed investigator, associates said.