Bahar Bites Back, Sues Lotus For $10 Million
Dany Bahar, the disgraced former CEO of the money-losing British sportscar maker Lotus, sued Lotus and its Malaysian parent DRB-Hicom for wrongful dismissal. According to Bloomberg, Bahar wants 6.7 million pounds ($10.6 million) from Lotus for alleged unlawful early termination of his employment. The media got wind of the lawsuit after DRB-Hicom made a filing at the Kuala Lumpur Bursa.
In the stock exchange filing, DRB-Hicom said that “Dany Bahar was dismissed after an investigation into his stewardship of Lotus.” No specifics were given. When Bahar was fired on June 7, “the decision was made by the board of Group Lotus plc following the results of an investigation into a complaint made against him by the company’s penultimate holding company, DRB-HICOM Berhad,” an official statement said.
DRB, controlled by billionaire Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary, inherited Lotus through its purchase of Malaysian carmaker Proton. The “handsome” and “flamboyant” (The Independent) Bahar was hired from Ferrari three year ago. He was supposed to turn the company around. Instead, it burned through all available cash.
In the business, CEOs and top level executives can afford all kinds of improprieties – as long as they are successful. If they fall from grace, corporate auditors usually find something that otherwise would be overlooked.
According to the filing, DRB and Lotus will file counter-claims.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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I guess he couldn't get another job so he might as well sue them.
He does have brass balls for sure.
He definitely deserves hundreds of thousands of dozens of British pounds in lost opportunity compensation for that all that work he was going to do with Lotus. Should not have been fired for spending Lotus funds on the house.
Lotus should hook up with a German car maker, preferably BMW. Heck, the Germans already bought most British brands. Being able to get modern power plants should motivate management. Toyota's leftovers won't do anymore. Concentrate on updating the Elise and Evora. Bring the (CC) Elite in production (not the Esprit).