General Counsel Patrick Donnelly to Exit SiriusXM in 2025

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SiriusXM General Counsel and Secretary Patrick Donnelly has announced he will retire this year. While a successor has yet to be named, a transition plan has been implemented to ensure continuity during his departure as the company faces ongoing litigation.

Donnelly will remain in his full-time role until April 4, during which he will continue to serve as EVP, General Counsel, and Secretary. Following the appointment of his replacement, he will transition to an advisory role, assisting the General Counsel part-time until the year’s end.

The transition comes as SiriusXM is in two high-profile legal challenges concerning its royalty payments.

In August 2023, SoundExchange filed a lawsuit against the company, alleging that SiriusXM had withheld $150 million in royalties by manipulating federal regulations to underreport revenue. SoundExchange claimed that SiriusXM assigned an inflated value to its webcasting services within bundled packages, thereby reducing the royalty pool for satellite radio.

SiriusXM denied any wrongdoing and counterclaimed that SoundExchange owed them damages, asserting that the royalty collection entity had misinterpreted the regulations. That battle continues with the case being moved to New York courts in this past July.

Additionally, BMI initiated legal action against SiriusXM in September by taking the company to rate court.

On another legal front, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against the satellite broadcaster in December 2023, alleging that the company employed deceptive practices by making it excessively difficult for customers to cancel their subscriptions. In November, New York Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank ruled against SiriusXM, stating that its cancellation procedures violated the federal Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act.

As a result, the company was ordered to revise its cancellation process to comply with legal standards.

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