Alphabet’s chief legal officer David Drummond is leaving the company. Drummond claims he’s retiring “to make way for the next generation of leaders,” but allegations that he had affairs with employees could cast some doubt on his motives.
Drummond’s departure comes not long after Larry Page and Sergey Brin stepped down as CEO and President, respectively. “With Larry and Sergey now leaving their executive roles at Alphabet, the company is entering an exciting new phase, and I believe that it’s also the right time for me to make way for the next generation of leaders,” Drummond wrote in an internal memo to colleagues shared by Bloomberg.
Drummond joined Google in 2002 as chief legal officer and maintained that position when the company restructured into Alphabet. A few months ago, Drummond was named in a board investigation into how sexual misconduct claims were handled. Not long before that, Jennifer Blakely, a woman who worked in Google’s legal department and had a child with Drummond, claimed that he abused his power over her while engaging in affairs with other employees.
Drummond claims to be leaving the company on his own terms. Notably, an Alphabet spokesperson told Bloomberg that the company will not offer Drummond an exit package. In the past, Google has been criticized, and sued, for offering hefty payouts to executives accused of misconduct. Though, in the past several months, Drummond has sold more than $200 million in stocks.