http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003688550_webbpceo01.html Originally published May 1, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Page modified May 1, 2007 at 4:16 PM
BP CEO resigns after judge clears way for reporting on his private life
Bp chief Executive John Browne resigned today, hours after a judge lifted a legal injunction preventing a newspaper from publishing details...
By D'Arcy Doran
The Associated Press
LONDON — BP Chief Executive John Browne resigned today, hours after a judge lifted a legal injunction preventing a newspaper from publishing details of his private life and allegations that he misused company resources.
…
Browne, 59, had been fighting since January to keep the Mail on Sunday newspaper from publishing details from an interview with a man with whom he had a relationship. BP said the newspaper had also sought to report allegations that Browne misused company resources — claims it said an internal investigation determined were unfounded.
…
Browne first joined the company in 1966 as an apprentice and worked his way up, taking the top job in 1995. He oversaw BP's expansion into the United States, involving a number of takeovers, including the 1998 merger with Amoco and the subsequent acquisitions of Arco and Castrol.
But his attempts to fashion BP as an environmentally friendly oil company — he was the first major oil company CEO to acknowledge global warming and masterminded BP's logo change from a shield to a flowerlike sunburst design the slogan "Beyond Petroleum" — were undermined by the company's recent U.S. troubles.
…