And the winner is…..Sandra Leung, a 14-year company veteran, who had been serving as interim general counsel. She’ll continue reporting to interim ceo and board member Jim Cornelius, as well as serve as a member of the drugmaker’s executive committee.

Her promotion comes five months after former general counsel Dick Willard was booted along with disgraced ceo Peter Dolan after the bungled deal to prevent generic Plavix caused a firestorm.

Leung, 46, joined Bristol-Myers Squibb in 1992 as a staff attorney, and rose through the ranks, becoming chief ethics officer along the way, although given recent events, it’s hard to see how she had much influence.

But here’s a key to her promotion: Before joining the company, Leung was an assistant district attorney for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.

In other words, she understands the criminal mind. And that’s an important skill to have if you’re going to keep a drugmaker out of trouble.

[tags]Bristol-Myers Squibb, Sandra Leung[/tags]