Unilever's UK pension fund yesterday launched a legal claim for damages of more than £100 million sterling (€154 million) against City investment group Mercury Asset Management (MAM). Trustees of the £4 billion Unilever Superannuation Fund filed the claim in the London High Court alleging MAM was guilty of negligence when it acted as investment manager for the fund between January 1997 and March 1998.

The trustees allege MAM, which is now owned by investment bank Merrill Lynch, invested in risky shares when it managed the fund's cash, causing it to fall short of agreed performance levels.

Mr Richard Greenhalgh, chairman of the board of trustees at Unilever Superannuation Fund, said the decision to launch a legal case had not been taken lightly.