Ghosn Sues Nissan, Mitsubishi for €17 Million

Carlos Ghosn, the former chairman of Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, has sued both companies for cancelling his contract as head of the Dutch company that manages their joint operations, the Financial Times reports.

Ghosn filed his €15 million ($17 million) lawsuit in a Dutch court at the end of last month. The complaint says Nissan and MMC violated Dutch law by firing him last November without providing justification and for “continuously refusing” to substantiate their claims of financial wrongdoing.

A joint internal investigation by the two carmakers concluded in January that Ghosn may have received nearly €8 million in improper payments from Nissan-Mitsubishi BV. The probe did not say why the suspected payments were made through NMBV but concluded Ghosn’s contract with the entity was not properly authorized.

Sources tell FT that Ghosn’s lawsuit aims to find out what sort of evidence the probe collected and to force Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa and MMC Chairman Osamu Masuko, both of whom are on the NMBV board, to testify in court.