Pictured: French financial expert Nathalie Dauriac, 39, leaving the High Court in London where she is embroiled in a row over money with Phones 4U founder John Caudwell
The founder of Phones 4U has accused a French financial specialist is trying to smear his name after she was investigated for fiddling expenses while working for him.
Entrepreneur John Caudwell, 65, is currently embroiled in High Court battle with the former chief executive of Signia Wealth Management.
Nathalie Dauriac-Stoebe, 39, is claiming unfair dismissal from her joint venture with the billionnarie. The former banker alleges she was pushed out and forced to sell her stake in the company for £2.
Lawyers representing Mr Caudwell told the High Court judge today that Miss Dauriac had ‘demonstrated a willingness to make gratuitous allegations’.
Mr Caudwell accused the 39-year-old French financier of trying to smear his name.
Miss Dauriac refutes the claims and has accused Mr Caudwell of orchestrating an ‘elaborate conspiracy’ against her after they set up the wealth management company together.
She said he launched an ‘unfair’ expenses investigation when she was chief executive at Signia Wealth Management.
Miss Dauriac is suing for wrongful dismissal and demanding compensation, claiming she was forced to sell her share of the firm for just £2 when it was worth closer to £17million.
Signia bosses, fighting on behalf of Mr Caudwell, argue Ms Dauriac wrongfully claimed around £30,000 expenses.
They claim her approach to expenses was brazen and she was guilty of gross misconduct.
All sides dispute allegations made against them.
Mr Justice Smith is analysing the dispute over the past three weeks at a High Court hearing in London.
Lawyers for both sides are outlining closing arguments as the trial nears an end.
‘Ms Dauriac’s evidence was unreliable in the extreme and involved what were plainly a series of lies,’ barrister Monica Carss-Frisk QC, who is leading Signia’s legal team told the judge in a written case summary.
Fighting back: John Caudwell, pictured leaving court, has hit back at claims his former business partner was forced out of her position by accusing her of ‘smearing’ his name
‘She has demonstrated a willingness to make gratuitous allegations against Mr Caudwell personally in order to place undue pressure on him
‘Her oral evidence contained a number of unprompted smears.’
Barrister Thomas Plewman QC, who led Ms Dauriac’s legal team, told the judge: ‘Ms Dauriac was forced out.’
He added: ‘There were no grounds to dismiss her.
‘The expenses investigation was a pretext and revealed no wrongdoing.’
Earlier in the court case in October, Ms Dauriac told the High Court the phones tycoon hired a private eye to ‘dig up dirt’ on her when they fell out in a row over her expenses.
The financial expert, 39, said a bug had been put under her car and her emails hacked, although she could not prove who was responsible.
The former chief executive claims she was forced out of the wealth management firm they founded in 2009 after the Phones 4U founder, 65, orchestrated an ‘elaborate conspiracy’ against her.
Lawyers for Signia Wealth claimed she ‘stole’ more than £33,000 in expenses and would have been sacked had she not resigned.
Miss Dauriac took the witness stand in October to deny she had stolen from the fund to pay for personal holidays and beauty treatments.
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