A legal dispute between Apple and IBM over a former IBM employee hired to serve as Apple's new senior vice president of Devices Hardware Engineering has been resolved, Apple announced Tuesday.

Mark Papermaster will start work on April 24, reporting to CEO Steve Jobs, who is currently on a six-month health-related hiatus.

IBM sued Papermaster in October, alleging that Papermaster is "in possession of significant and highly confidential IBM trade secrets and know-how, as well as highly sensitive information regarding business strategy and long-term opportunities."

IBM pointed to non-compete agreement signed by Papermaster in 2006 in which he agreed not to work for an IBM competitor for at least a year if he ever left IBM. In November, a U.S. District court ordered Papermaster to immediately stop work amidst fears that he might disclose IBM trade secrets.

"The litigation between IBM and Mark Papermaster has been resolved," Apple said in a Tuesday statement.

According to court documents, the injunction against Papermaster is lifted and all claim and counterclaims are dismissed. Papermaster is also prohibited from disclosing IBM trade secrets to Apple employees. In July 2009 and again in October 2009, Papermaster must send a document to IBM that says under the penalty of perjury that he has not revealed any of those secrets.

If Papermaster has any question as to what constitutes secret information, he must contact IBM before revealing that data, according to court filings.

Papermaster replaces iPod innovator Tony Fadell. Papermaster is a 26-year veteran of IBM, where he most recently served as vice president of IBM's blade development unit, which designs IBM's blade-model servers.