Olympus set for the dock

Michael Woodford, the ousted Olympus chief executive, was set to begin his $60 million (£38 million) lawsuit for unfair dismissal against his former Japanese employer at midday today.

In the largest claim of its kind, Woodford is suing for damages amounting to 10 years of lost earnings. He was fired only two weeks into the job and alleges that it was for persistently questioning a string of obscure and hefty payments linked to acquisitions.

The camera-to-endoscope behemoth claims that the board unanimously voted to sack Woodford — the firm’s first non-Japanese boss — because he didn’t understand its management style or Japanese culture. Woodford, who had been at Olympus for 30 years before taking the top job, was ordered to quit his apartment.

Shortly after that the payments were found to relate to a $1.7 billion accounting fraud.

The hearing was postponed this morning by two hours to midday as the possibility of an out-of-court settlement was examined.