Starbucks Coffee Company announced the appointment of Brad Lerman as executive vice president and general counsel following an extensive internal and external search. Lerman will serve on the executive leadership team, reporting directly to chief executive officer, Laxman Narasimhan, effective May 8, 2023.
Lerman joins the company with over three decades of legal and regulatory experience in both the public and private sector. Most recently, Lerman was Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Medtronic, a healthcare technology provider, where he led the global legal function, government affairs and the office of ethics and compliance across the U.S., South America, Europe and Asia. He has also served in similar leadership roles at the Federal National Mortgage Association and Pfizer, where he led the company’s litigation and investigations teams. Lerman’s background also includes more than two decades as a private practice litigation and intellectual property attorney advising leading consumer brands, eight years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and as an adjunct professor at Northwestern University School of Law. He also currently serves on the board of directors of McKesson, a leader in healthcare services.
“Through my immersion at Starbucks, I quickly learned we have a highly skilled team of partners (employees) that make up our Law and Corporate Affairs team,” says Laxman Narasimhan, chief executive officer. “We are excited to welcome Brad who brings a tenure of experience leading companies through some of their most challenging issues across international markets and working closely with regulators around the world. His expertise in both the public and private sectors will strengthen our decision making, protect and advance the business and brand of Starbucks in the markets in which we operate, and further develop our legal and compliance talent. I want to thank Zabrina Jenkins, our acting general counsel, for her exceptional leadership and invaluable contributions during her time in the role.”
“To serve the partners of Starbucks, one of the world’s most admired brands, is a true honor,” says Brad Lerman. “The strength of Starbucks’ leadership team and board of directors, coupled with the talented Starbucks Law and Corporate Affairs team, is what excites me most as we look to advance a bold mission and vision for the future of Starbucks.”
Following a six-month immersion, Narasimhan officially took the reins as ceo on March 20, 2023, making today’s announcement one of his first following a declaration of Starbucks as a company with limitless possibilities at this year’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
