I never make notes and can't read my writing, says Abramovich

Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich today told a High Court judge that he never made notes and struggled to read his own handwriting.

He told Mrs Justice Gloster that he normally could not read anything he had written.

Mr Abramovich, 45, is being sued for billions by exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, 65, in a trial at the Commercial Court in London. Mr Abramovich was giving evidence for a sixth day as the trial entered its sixth week.

He spoke in Russian and his words were translated by an interpreter.

“I myself never make any notes,” he told the court. “Usually if I write something down, I can’t read it afterwards. I haven’t got the most beautiful handwritings, the tidiest of handwritings.”

Mr Berezovsky says Mr Abramovich “betrayed” him and “intimidated” him into selling shares in Russian oil company Sibneft for a “mere $1.3bn” – “a fraction of their true worth”.

He alleges breach of trust and breach of contract, and is claiming more than £3bn in damages.

Mr Abramovich denies the allegations and denies that Mr Berezovsky is entitled to damages. He says Mr Berezovsky was paid millions of pounds for his services as a “political godfather” but was not a business partner.

The court has heard that Mr Berezovsky “fled Russia, never to return” in late 2000, following a fall-out with then president Vladimir Putin – travelling initially to France, then settling in England.