Microsoft Alumni Voices recently launched an oral history project about “the people behind the innovations that have democratized computing and changed the world.” Among the first of Microsoft’s alumni to be featured was William H. Neukom, who built Microsoft’s legal department and served as the company’s lead lawyer for nearly 25 years. Neukom navigated pivotal moments in the company’s formation and history, including its IPO and the landmark litigation with Apple and the Department of Justice. “Through stories of strategy, resilience, and groundbreaking decisions, Bill offers an inside look at how legal leadership shaped one of the most influential companies in the world,” according to the Alumni Voices project, which was launched to mark Microsoft’s 50th anniversary this year.

Neukom retired from Microsoft as its executive vice president of law and corporate affairs in late 2002, returning to the law firm K&L Gates to serve as its chair from 2003 to 2007. Among numerous other roles on boards and with companies, he also served as CEO of the San Francisco Giants baseball team from 2007 through 2011. He was president of the American Bar Association from 2007 to 2008 and received the ABA Medal, the organization’s highest honor, in 2020. Today, he serves as the president of the World Justice Project, which he founded in 2007 to promote the rule of law around the world. In 2022, thanks to a significant gift from the Neukom family, Stanford Law School launched the Sally B. and William H. Neukom Center for the Rule of Law, which works on numerous fronts to advance accountability, just laws, open government, and accessible justice around the world.