Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund, has been ordered to stand trial on negligence charges over her handling of a €403 million payout to the tycoon Bernard Tapie when she was French finance minister.
Examining judges overruled a call from the chief prosecutor to drop the case. They said that Ms Lagarde, 59, should face a court to explain why she approved the 2008 payment, despite queries raised by her officials.
The payment was made on advice from an arbitration tribunal to compensate for losses in a dispute with the Credit Lyonnais bank. The claim arose from the 1993 sale of the sportswear company Adidas, which was controlled by Mr Tapie.
Ms Lagarde, a lawyer by profession, said that she would appeal