A former top Volkswagen manager and engineer is taking the car giant to court in Germany's largest-ever patent claim by an employee, news weekly Der Spiegel reported on Friday. Wolfgang Schreiber has brought a case before the state court in Munich, asking for "several hundred million euros", after turning down an offer from VW of more than 20 million euros ($22.5 million).
He was named as the inventor on several patents related to double-clutch transmissions after being named head of gearbox development for Volkswagen in 1996. The former engineer and one-time head of Bugatti and Bentley - both VW subsidiaries - believes that his brainchild is worth more than VW offered, as double-clutch gearboxes have been included in more than four million vehicles built by the group.