Formerly of Intel

Apple says that it has appointed a new general counsel, Bruce Sewell, who will also serve as the company's senior VP for Legal and Government Affairs. He is replacing Daniel Cooperman, who previously held both positions for two years, and will be retiring towards the end of September. Sewell is noted to have formerly served at Intel, in identical roles.

The executive has extensive legal experience going back to at least 1986, and in first joining Intel in 1995 became a senior attorney counseling groups on areas such as licensing, intellectual property and meeting antitrust standards. The background could be a particular reason for his hiring at Apple, which is increasingly embroiled in antitrust and licensing concerns. The company is fighting Psystar over end-user licenses in Mac OS X Leopard and Snow Leopard, and facing an FTC investigation over its links with Google, which have raised antitrust concerns.

by MacNN Staff