Fox Corp. Top Lawyer Adam Ciongoli Stepping Down

Adam Ciongoli is stepping down as Fox’s top lawyer. The company announced on Tuesday that he won’t renew his contract. His last day in the position is Dec. 1, after which he’ll serve as a special advisor.

At the same time, executive vice president and principal deputy general counsel Nicholas Trutanich will become general counsel. He’ll report to CEO Lachlan Murdoch.

“Nick Trutanich has been a critical member of the FOX team since joining the Company five years ago and will bring deep legal, litigation and compliance experience to this expanded role,” Murdoch said in a statement.

In the position, Trutanich will navigate Fox Corp.’s $22 billion takeover of Roku. Shareholders of both companies approved the deal last week, though the Justice Department is still looking into the merger. The acquisition, if approved, would make Fox the third-largest distributor in the country by monthly viewership, according to Nielsen data. The merger is expected to be completed in the first half of next year.

“It is an exciting time of growth and innovation at FOX, and I look forward to working with colleagues across the Company to advance our goals,” Trutanich said in a statement.

Trutanich joined Fox as Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer in 2021, most recently leading the company’s litigation strategy. He was previously a federal prosecutor and held senior roles at the Nevada Attorney General’s Office.

Ciongoli will stay with Fox as a special advisor until at least June 2028. Amid tumultuous legal waters in 2023, he was tapped as the company’s chief lawyer to lead all legal, compliance and regulatory matters, taking over for Viet Dinh. At the time of his hiring, Fox faced at least three shareholder lawsuits involving alleged election falsehoods since the $787.5 million settlement of a defamation complaint brought by Dominion Voting Systems, as well as a second defamation suit brought by another election technology company, Smartmatic, which sought $2.7 billion.

Ciongoli, who also served as general counsel of Lincoln Financial Group and Time Warner, Europe, received a base salary of $1.75 million with target bonus of $2.75 million and a shareholder award of up to $3 million

“I’d like to thank Adam for his many immense contributions over the last three years,” Murdoch said in a statement. “I deeply appreciate his service to FOX and am grateful that he will continue to serve FOX as a special advisor.

As part of the transition, the company also announced that head of government relations Kristopher Joneswill report directly to Chief Operating Officer John Nallen.