Uber hires ex-PepsiCo lawyer Tony West as its new Chief Legal Officer

Uber has acquired the services of Tony West at the ride-hailing firm to battle against the series of investigations by the US government and a major lawsuit from one of its rivals. West was previously serving as the general counsel at PepsiCo and before that, he was an assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice under President Obama.

“Tony is exactly what Uber needs now,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi wrote in an email to staff seen by Bloomberg. “At Pepsi, he has emphasized diversity on his team and across the company. But perhaps most importantly, Pepsi has been named one of the world’s most ethical companies 10 years in a row. Under Tony’s leadership, I’m confident that we will one day join this list.”

West is the first significant appointment of the new Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who was hired following the resignation of former CEO Travis Kalanick. West will replace Salle Yoo who served as Uber's top lawyer since 2012. West will officially start from next month.

Addressing cultural problems, including a lawsuit that alleges Uber underpaid women and minorities, is among the many challenges West will face.  At Uber, West will contend with a number of criminal probes and one of the biggest legal battles playing out in Silicon Valley, a lawsuit against Uber from Alphabet Inc’s self-driving car unit, Waymo.

Pepsi said it had replaced Tony West with Dave Yawman, the company’s senior vice president and deputy general counsel.