The chief executive officer of magazine publisher Bauer Media Australia, Nick Chan, has left the company barely a year after taking the helm.

Senior executives have denied there is any connection between Chan's departure on Tuesday and actress Rebel Wilson's legal victory against the company last week over defamatory articles it published of her.

The German-based company publishes a raft of leading Australian magazines, including Woman's Day, Australian Women's Weekly, TV Week and Harper's Bazaar.

Bauer's New Zealand chief executive Paul Dykzeul has been named as Chan's replacement and will now lead the company's Australian and New Zealand operations.