Two senior Apple executives are leaving the company, Apple announced today.Apple's Senior Vice President and General Counsel Kate Adams and Lisa Jackson, Vice President of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, are both retiring in 2026.Adams will be replaced with Jennifer Newstead, who will join Apple as a senior vice president on January 1, and will become Apple's general counsel on March 1, 2026.
Newstead is currently Meta's chief legal officer, and she was previously the Legal Adviser to the United States Department of State.When Newstead takes over as general counsel, Adams will not immediately leave.She will instead oversee the Government Affairs organization after Jackson retires in late January 2026.
Adams will remain at Apple until late 2026, at which point Newstead will take over.Newstead will ultimately oversee both Apple's Legal and Government Affairs organizations as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Government Affairs.In a statement, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that he is pleased to merge Legal and Government Affairs because of increasing overlap between the two teams.
Jackson's other responsibilities, which include Environment and Social Initiatives, will be taken over by Chief Operating Officer Sabih Khan.Cook said that Jackson played an important role in helping Apple achieve its environmental goals.Adams has been with Apple since 2017, and before that, she worked for Honeywell.
Jackson joined Apple in 2013 after serving as Administrator of the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency, and she has been the face of Apple's environmental messaging since then.Apple's announcement comes shortly after lead interface designer Alan Dye left the company, and after AI chief John Giannandrea's retirement announcement.
Earlier this year, Apple lost Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams, who is retiring, and Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri.There have also been rumors about Apple CEO Tim Cook retiring, with rumors suggesting he is preparing to leave his role as soon as 2026.
