He’s Leaving CBS, Tu

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With its stock over $50 and former CEO Les Moonves opting for arbitration in his quest to collect some form of severance after his forced departure due to inappropriate behavior over the course of many years, CBS Corporation is certainly an operation full of positives and negatives.


Add another thing to the “con” list, investors: Its top legal eagle is saying adios.

Senior EVP and Chief Legal Counsel Lawrence Tu is departing the company, just months shy of his five-year anniversary at CBS.

In an 8-K filing made public late Wednesday (2/27), CBS revealed that Tu on Feb. 22 submitted his resignation, effective March 1.

In accordance with Tu’s separation agreement, he will remain a senior advisor to CBS’s CEO through April 30.

But, importantly, CBS says Tu’s resignation is for “Good Reason” within the meaning of his employment agreement with the company, agreed to on June 1, 2017.

As such, Tu is in a much better situation than Moonves with respect to compensation received upon departure from CBS.

Tu was SVP/General Counsel at Dell for nearly 10 years before joining CBS in June 2014. From July 2001-July 2004, he was EVP/General Counsel at NBC Universal.

Tu’s extensive background includes a stint at O’Melveny & Myers as a partner in its M&A practice; and as an attorney advisor for the State Department during the Reagan Administration. He is a 1981 Harvard Law School Juris Doctor.

CBS shares are currently trading just above $50 a share. This compares to the low-$43 range seen across the final week of December 2018, but is a stock that most financial advisors believe has a fair market price of roughly $60.