FORMER Rangers chief executive Charles Green is taking legal action to force the club to pay legal fees in his defence of criminal charges he faces over the Sevco acquisition of club assets in 2012.
It is understood Mr Green claims his contract entitles him to legal cover during and after his time at the helm.
The businessman fronted the Sevco consortium to buy the assets of the club through a £5.5m loan in June 2012 as the oldco headed into liquidation.
He was forced to resign as chief executive in April 2013 when allegations of business links with former owner Craig Whyte emerged, although he denied any wrongdoing. He had also been fined £2,500 by the Scottish FA for making racist remarks in a newspaper interview about his colleague and former commercial director Imran Ahmad.
He parted company with the club four months later after he had his contract as a paid consultant to the club terminated. He was to leave 18 days after he was appointed to the role.
It is understood legal representatives of Mr Green have called for a court ruling on his claim, with fees involved expected to be in excess of £500,000.
Mr Green and a number of others, including the club's former owner Craig Whyte, appeared at Glasgow Sheriff Court earlier this month charged in connection with the Sevco takeover.
The moves followed a long-running investigation by Police Scotland into events at the club in 2012 and 2013.
Mr Green left his £360,000-a-year chief executive role with a 100% bonus after Rangers won the Third Division, while he also received a large pay-off for standing down.
He was once one of the biggest single shareholders in Rangers International Football Club plc, with a 7.7 per cent stake in the company, which he was able to sell off in December 2013, as part of a lock-in agreement he entered into.
Mr Green purchased five million shares in Rangers at the knock-down price of 1p each as part of an agreement entered into on October 31, 2012.
Rangers declined to comment.
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