Guardian News & Media (GNM) legal chief Nuala Cosgrove has agreed to take up a new role with media regulator Ofcom.

Cosgrove will join the regulator in the New Year, after spending six years with the publishing company's in-house team. She will report to Ofcom general counsel Polly Weitzman.

Cosgrove's move to Ofcom marks her third major in-house role. As well as working at GNM, Cosgrove spent two years at fashion brand Burberry and has also worked in private practice, spending a year at Davenport Lyons and five years at Finers Stephens Innocent (then known as Stephens Innocent).

GNM will now begin its search for Cosgrove's replacement, just two years after her appointment to the position of director of editorial legal services in January 2007.

The departure of Cosgrove follows a restructure of the GNM legal function last year. The legal team at the company was split into two following the arrival of Siobhan Butterworth as the reader's editor.

GNM managing director Tim Brooks and editor Alan Rusbridger established separate editorial and commercial divisions with Cosgrove heading up the editorial legal function and Sarah Davis appointed to lead the commercial arm of the legal team.

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