Image copyright
Getty Images
Japanese car maker Nissan has filed a civil lawsuit against its former chairman Carlos Ghosn.
The suit, filed at Yokohama District Court, seeks an initial amount of $90m (£69.5m).
The company said it aims “to recover a significant part of the monetary damages inflicted on the company by its former chairman”.
Mr Ghosn is currently in Lebanon after jumping bail in Japan, where he faces charges of financial misconduct.
Nissan said it expects the amount claimed in damages to “increase in future” as it seeks to recover fines it expects to have to pay to regulators due to Mr Ghosn’s alleged misconduct.
The company also said that it may pursue separate legal action over what it called “groundless and defamatory” remarks made by Mr Ghosn in a news conference he held in Beirut. At the conference Mr Ghosn said: “My unimaginable ordeal is the result of a handful of unscrupulous, vindictive individuals.”
He was facing criminal charges for allegedly understating his annual salary and misusing company funds, before he fled Tokyo in December.
Nissan has also accused Mr Ghosn of misusing the company’s money for overseas events. The events included a party at the Palace of Versailles, France, and trips to Rio de Janeiro carnivals.
He denies charges of financial wrongdoing in Japan, claiming the country’s justice system is “rigged”.
Mr Ghosn, who has an estimated net worth of $120m (£91m), was one of the most powerful figures in the global car industry until his arrest in November 2018.
The scandal has thrown into doubt the future of Nissan’s alliance with Renault and Mitsubishi.