Corporate pampering on a grand scale emerged yesterday when luxurious benefits enjoyed by the retired General Electric (GE) chief executive, Mr Jack Welch, were exposed in court.

Mr Welch is facing divorce proceedings by his wife Jane Beasley Welch and papers she filed in a Connecticut court disclose that GE continues to cover his huge living expenses despite his retirement last September.

While Mr Welch had a remuneration package worth €16.99 million in 2000, the documents show that GE pay for him to use a company apartment in Manhattan, pay for ringside seats at big-ticket sporting events and pay travel and entertainment expenses. Mr Welch also used a company aeroplane.

One of the world's most successful companies with a market capitalisation of more than €288 billion, GE prides itself on its high standards of corporate governance and its capacity to deliver growth and value to shareholders.

The front-flap of Mr Welch's ghostwritten memoir, Jack, Straight from the Gut, describes him as "the most admired business leader in the world".

The court documents revealed a lifestyle subsidised to a great extent by GE. According to a report in the New York Times, GE pays for a car and driver, and all expenses at the New York apartment, including food, wine, cooking, staff, laundry and furnishings. It pays for security services at Mr Welch's three other homes and pays membership fees at four country clubs.

With Mr Welch now paid €57,044 a year as a consultant, GE has also promised to provide him with "continued lifetime access to company facilities and services comparable to those which are currently made available to him by the company".

His wife's lawyer said Mr Welch had cancelled credit cards and given her almost €35,663 a month in support, which she accepted in protest.

She was seeking more because that amount was far below the couple's previous standard of living.

The couple's separation came two years after a prenuptial agreement expired, one which was designed to protect Mr Welch's €917 million fortune.

They parted shortly after it was reported the editor of the Harvard Business Review, Ms Suzy Wetlaufer, had resigned after beginning a relationship with Mr Welch.