Philip Morris International, a Switzerland-based international tobacco company, announced that Suzanne Rich Folsom has been appointed Senior Vice President and General Counsel, leading Legal, Ethics & Compliance, effective July 1, 2020. She will report to PMI CEO André Calantzopoulos.
Folsom will succeed Marc Firestone, who will retire later this year. Since January 2018, Firestone has held a dual role at PMI: President, External Affairs and General Counsel. He will continue to lead the company’s External Affairs function until a successor is appointed.
Prior to this role, Folsom served in Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, where she co-chaired the Investigations, Compliance, and Strategic Response Group and was a member of the Government & Regulatory and Cyber & Privacy groups. Before that, she was the General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, and SVP, Government Affairs and Global Public Policy at United States Steel Corporation. Previously, she held leadership positions with a number of global entities, including AIG, ACADEMI, and the World Bank, and served in key roles for several Heads of State and their families. Folsom holds degrees from Georgetown University Law Center and Duke University.
In her new role, Folsom will be an ambassador for the company across legal and regulatory environments; influence conversations aimed at creating a climate of change for better consumer choice as the company drives forward with its smoke-free transition; serve as counselor to PMI’s executive leadership team, board of directors, and other leaders; and build support for appropriate, risk-proportionate regulatory frameworks, among other functions.
“Suzanne Rich Folsom comes to us with a reputation as one of the most highly regarded and experienced general counsels and compliance and corporate governance specialists, having operated in very complex business environments,” said André Calantzopoulos.
Calantzopoulos added: “Together with the board and our senior leadership, I extend enormous gratitude to Marc Firestone for all he has done for PMI. Aside from several years when he served as EVP and General Counsel for Kraft Foods after its spin-off, Marc has been part of the Philip Morris community since 1988. A diplomatic statesman beyond compare, Marc has been the external face of PMI, serving as the embodiment of our ethical values and liaising with governments and regulators to inject common sense into the debate around tobacco. We will forever be a better company because of Marc’s influence, and we wish him all the best in his retirement.”
In addition to his work at PMI and Kraft Foods, Firestone is co founder and chairman of the Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession; a frequent speaker on international antitrust law, diversity, and in-house legal practice; and a recipient of numerous awards, including the Director’s Roundtable Distinguished General Counsel.
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