The tycoon, once considered the most powerful automotive industry figure in the world, accused Nissan, along with two
other companies and 12 named individuals, of crimes including defamation, slander, libel and the fabrication of material
evidence.

A hearing in the case, filed in Lebanon, was scheduled for 18 September according to the Reuters news agency.

The lawsuit will be widely seen as something of an attempted fightback by the 69-year-old, who always denied the charges he faced in Tokyo.

He escaped Japan hidden in a box meant for music equipment aboard a private jet in December 2019.

That plane took him to Lebanon, his childhood home, where he has remained ever since.

The two countries have no extradition treaty.

A US special forces veteran and his son later admitted illegally helping Ghosn flee Japan.

Ghosn, who had been awaiting trial in Japan on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust and misappropriation of company funds, said he was escaping a "rigged" justice system and that he intended to clear
his name.

In 2021, he lost a claim that he was wrongly dismissed from his role as chairman of the Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.