They were once said to be like father and son, vacationing, signing deals, and socializing at the Kremlin together. But these days two of Russia's richest men can't stand each other — and they're trading insults in a spectacularly expensive public feud. At more than $6.5 billion, the lawsuit brought by Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky against fellow oligarch Roman Abramovich is a financial drama of giant proportions. “It's the biggest claim currently being litigated anywhere in the world,” said Mark Hastings, one of the lawyers acting for Berezovsky in the case being heard at London's Commercial Court. It's not just the money that sets the case apart; it's the larger-than-life cast of characters set against the murky backdrop of post-Soviet politics. Berezovsky, 65, is a fabulously rich former Kremlin power broker turned enemy of the state who has sought refuge in Britain while remaining an outspoken critic of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Abramovich, 45, has gobbled up London institutions like Chelsea Football Club and spent part of his vast fortune on beautiful yachts and homes. They are among the most visible members of the freespending Russian oligarchy that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet state. Abramovich is scheduled to take the witness stand and undergo cross-examination on Monday. At the core of the suit is the billions of dollars that Berezovsky claims Abramovich owes him. Berezovsky accuses his former friend and protege of betraying him when he fell out of favor with then-president Vladimir Putin. The case has drawn large crowds of journalists, trainee lawyers and spectators, especially on days when Berezovsky was on the stand. The Commercial Court has opened another room video-linked to it for visitors who can't find a seat in court. But many Russians in London seem to take a cynical view in this battle of the billionaires. Lawyers say that many wealthy Russians flock to English courtrooms because they believe they can find fairness there, compared with Russian courts. The lawyer for Abramovich — a so-called “stealth oligarch” who has shied away from the media and hardly speaks in public — has dismissed Berezovsky's claims as nonsense and accused him of lying. In a witness statement published this weekend in advance of his testimony, Abramovich says he has already paid Berezovsky more than $2.5 billion for his political patronage, and doesn't owe him any more. Berezovsky and Abramovich, both self-made entrepreneurs, were said to have become friends after they met on a private cruise. Berezovsky, a mathematician who founded the first Mercedes dealership in the former Soviet Union, built his fortune during Russia's privatization of state assets in the early 1990s. Together with a third partner, the pair founded Sibneft, the Russian oil and gas conglomerate. In 2005, Abramovich sold Sibneft to Russia's state-owned gas monopoly Gazprom in a multibillion-dollar deal. The two men's fortunes reversed when Berezovsky fell out with Putin, with whom he said he had enjoyed “fantastical relations”, shortly after he became president in 2000.
