Apple hires Meta’s Scott Tucker to lead litigation: report

Apple ↗ 0.43% has hired Scott Tucker, a longtime deputy general counsel and litigation chief at Meta Platforms ↘ 3.72%, to lead its legal fights around the world. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported on Friday, October 16, that the hire comes as the iPhone maker faces a growing number of lawsuits. Bloomberg cited people with knowledge of the matter. Apple had not announced the move publicly.9to5mac.com

The hire brings Tucker back together with Apple General Counsel Jennifer Newstead, who is bringing in a trusted deputy from her time at the social networking company, according to Bloomberg.9to5mac.com

A newly created role

Tucker's title will be vice president of global litigation and financial services. The newly created job covers commercial and patent litigation worldwide, along with legal matters tied to Apple's financial products, 9to5Mac reported, citing Bloomberg. He spent nearly six years at Meta as vice president and deputy general counsel for global litigation after joining in 2021. Before that, he held a senior legal job at Morgan Stanley ↘ 0.84%.9to5mac.com

The hire also changes reporting lines. Heather Grenier, Apple's vice president of commercial and competition litigation, will now report to Tucker instead of directly to Newstead, but she will keep her seat on Newstead's legal leadership team, per the report. Apple is also giving longtime legal executive Kyle Andeer more responsibility. He will now oversee international legal matters and work involving online child safety, cybersecurity and law enforcement.9to5mac.com

Newstead reshapes Apple's legal team

The move continues a reorganization that started when Newstead, Meta's former chief legal officer, joined Apple earlier this year as general counsel, replacing longtime executive Kate Adams, 9to5Mac noted. Newstead later took over government affairs as well, after Lisa Jackson retired. That put Apple's legal and government affairs teams under one executive. Apple also hired former American Airlines ↘ 3.26% executive Nate Gatten as vice president of government affairs. Tim Cook, Apple's former CEO and now its executive chairman, is still directly involved in government relations.9to5mac.com

A heavy legal docket

Tucker will join Apple during a period of heavy legal scrutiny. The company's cases include a broad U.S. antitrust lawsuit, its long-running dispute with Epic Games over App Store restrictions, and lawsuits over privacy and delayed Siri features, MacMagazine reported. Bloomberg described the hire as a way to strengthen Apple's legal team as that list of lawsuits keeps growing.macmagazine.com.br+1