Release Details

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) announced today that its board of directors has elected Stephen D. Yslas, 61, corporate vice president and general counsel effective Jan. 1, 2009. Yslas succeeds W. Burks Terry who is retiring Dec. 31, 2008. In his new role, Yslas will be responsible for oversight of all of the company's legal matters. He will report to Ronald D. Sugar, the company's chairman and chief executive officer, and become a member of the company's Corporate Policy Council.

The board also elected Joseph F. Coyne, Jr., 53, a partner with the law firm of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP, to succeed Yslas as corporate vice president, secretary and deputy general counsel.

Photos accompanying this release are available at: http://media.primezone.com/noc/

"We are pleased that Steve will assume responsibility for all of the company's legal affairs," said Sugar. "He has demonstrated his acumen and leadership skills over the past three decades and has made significant contributions to Northrop Grumman's success."

"Burks has played a key role in the growth of the corporation over the past 32 years," said Sugar. "His contributions to our continuing success are innumerable. We wish him well in retirement."

Yslas was appointed corporate vice president, secretary and deputy general counsel in 2006. He previously served as chief counsel to the company's aircraft and electronics businesses, and also led the legal team on regulatory matters, including those involving the acquisitions of Litton, Newport News and TRW.

Before joining the company in 1975, Yslas worked for the Atlantic Richfield Company and the National Labor Relations Board. He served for 10 years on the City of Los Angeles Police Commission. He has been active in organizations including the Hispanic National and Mexican American Bar Associations, and served as a Trustee of Claremont McKenna College. Yslas earned a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles and a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law.

In his new role, Coyne will be responsible for corporate secretary and governance functions. As deputy general counsel he will supervise other general legal activities within the company. He will report to Yslas.

Coyne has 30 years' experience in a broad range of legal and business matters with particular expertise in litigation and the aerospace and defense industry. As a partner at Sheppard Mullin, Coyne has worked directly with Northrop Grumman on a number of important legal matters since 1981.

His honors in the legal community include Leading Litigator in America from Lawdragon Magazine, the National Law Journal's award for one of the top national defense verdicts, and several Los Angeles Business Journal lists including Best of the Bar, Who's Who in Law, and Most Powerful Lawyers and Top Trial Lawyers in Los Angeles. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and a J.D. from Stanford University, and has served on Stanford Law School's Board of Visitors.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.

SOURCE  Northrop Grumman Corporation

    -0-                             12/17/2008
    /CONTACT:  Dan McClain of Northrop Grumman Corporation, +1-310-201-3335,
dan.mcclain@ngc.com/
    /Web site:  http://www.northropgrumman.com /
    (NOC)

CO:  Northrop Grumman Corporation

ST:  California, District of Columbia
IN:  ARO
SU:  PER

AL-CR
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9469 12/17/2008 14:00 EST http://www.prnewswire.com