Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi goes on trial today charged with corporate fraud.
Mr Berlusconi, who has kept a relatively low profile since he lost elections to Romano Prodi in April, is charged with fraud at broadcaster Mediaset, which his family controls.
Prosecutors say a US firm sold TV rights to two offshore companies controlled by Mr Berlusconi, which in turn sold the rights to Mediaset at an inflated price to avoid Italian taxes and create a slush fund.
Mr Berlusconi has denied wrongdoing and accused foes of bringing spurious charges against him for political gain. If convicted of the most serious charge, tax fraud, he could face up to six years in prison.
Over the past two decades the entrepreneur-turned-politician has been involved in numerous legal cases. He was sentenced to jail for false bookkeeping at a film-production company and for paying bribes to tax inspectors but was later acquitted on appeal.
In the latest case the 70-year-old opposition leader will be tried with 13 other people, including British lawyer David Mills, the estranged husband of British Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell and an expert in off-shore tax advice.
Mr Berlusconi is not expected to attend the opening sessions of the trial, which will likely last months if not years.
A former cruise ship crooner who amassed a fortune in real estate, Mr Berlusconi has business interests ranging from publishing and broadcasting to finance, football and gyms.