By Jonathan Davies
Tesco is facing potential legal action from its own shareholders as a result of the accounting scandal last year.
US law firm Scott+Scott has already filed a class action lawsuit against the supermarket giant in the US, claiming that the overstatement of its profits caused "permanent destruction of value to shareholders".
The law firm also said it is in talks with UK institutions about launching a claim against Tesco in the UK and Europe.
"International institutions asked us to find a way to bring a claim in the UK which they can join," said David Scott, managing partner at Scott + Scott.
The action follows the accounting scandal in which it was revealed in September that Tesco had overstated its profits by £263 million.
Tesco's shares fell to a 14-year low of 164.8p, but has since recovered somewhat to 246p per share.
But Scott + Scott says the share price and value of the company would be "materially higher" if it wasn't for the overstatement of profits.
Tesco is being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the scandal and several directors have left the company since it launched its own internal investigation.
