(Bloomberg) — Erich Andersen, the US-based general counsel for TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd., is stepping down from that role, the social media app said.
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Andersen, who was a key executive responsible for convincing the US government that the company was doing enough to stave off national security concerns about its connections to China, will leave the role in June. He’ll remain as “special counsel to the company,” according to a TikTok statement on Friday.
The move comes days after President Joe Biden signed into law a bill that threatens TikTok’s existence in the US, requiring ByteDance to either divest its stake in the app or see it banned. The companies are expected to wage a legal battle to try to overturn or delay enforcement of the legislation.
The company had been preparing to remove Andersen from his role as general counsel following the advancement in US Congress of the legislation to force a TikTok divestment or ban, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on April 20. In his new role, Andersen will focus on the effort to overturn the legislation in the US and “other pressing legal matters,” the company said.
“It was a difficult decision to step down after so many years in this role,” Andersen said in Friday’s statement. “I’m grateful to my talented global legal team, which has successfully faced every new challenge with incredible grit and maturity.”
Read More: TikTok to Remove Executive Tasked With Fending Off US Claims
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