The top legal officers at the region's major tech companies have collectively sold off roughly $150 million in company shares so far this year, with Apple Inc.'s D. Bruce Sewell alone cashing out for $70 million, while Dorian Daley at Oracle Corp. and Google Inc.'s David Drummond both sold about $10 million worth of stock.

In fact, at almost half of the largest 50 Valley companies, the top legal officer has sold at least $1 million in company stock this year. And at about half of the 50 companies, the top legal officer is holding at least $1 million, not counting unvested stock and unexercised option grants.