Michele A. Pearce (born 1969) is an American lawyer and former government official. She served as the Principal Deputy General Counsel (PDGC) of the Army from January 6, 2020 to January 19, 2021. As PDGC, Pearce was the first assistant to the General Counsel and the number two attorney in the Department of the Army. Her duties included providing legal and policy advice to the Secretary of the Army, the Secretariat, and other Army senior leaders. On April 9, 2020, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Pearce to serve as the General Counsel of the Army. On May 4, 2020, her nomination was sent to the Senate. On August 4, 2020, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Armed Services Committee. During her confirmation hearing, Pearce testified regarding her commitment to implementing Project Inclusion focused on increasing diversity in the Army; the need for ethical implementation of artificial intelligence, employment of machine learning capabilities, and other emerging technologies; and the importance of safe and secure housing for military servicemembers and their families. The Senate Armed Services Committee voted by voice on September 15, 2020, to move Pearce's nomination forward. On January 3, 2021, her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. Early life and education Michele Angelica Lozen was born in Marine City, Michigan, the daughter of Michael Russell Lozen (United States Navy (Ret.)) and Cecilia Rivera Sanchez Lozen. Her father, after whom Mount Lozen was named, served in Antarctica and was recognized by the U.S. Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for exceptional service. He also served in Vietnam at Da Nang Air Base and aboard several nuclear ballistic submarines during the Cold War. Pearce is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and earned her J.D. degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law. Career Prior to serving as PDGC, Pearce was the Department of Defense Deputy General Counsel (Legislation). In that role, she provided legal advice to senior leaders throughout DoD and the Military Services on matters concerning legislation, congressional testimony and investigations, and executive orders. She also served as DoD's primary point of contact on such matters with the White House Office of Management and Budget and the White House Counsel's Office. Previously, Pearce served as the Senior Defense Advisor to Senator Susan Collins from 2015 to 2016. From 2010 to 2014, she was