Nor did the committee even discuss, the suit says, why a company controlled by Lord Black should sell properties for so little, if a second company controlled by Lord Black obviously believed they could be profitable.

At that same meeting, the committee also agreed to raise the annual management fees paid to Ravelston, a company controlled by Lord Black more than 7 percent over the 2000 fees of $24 million.

Hollinger, it turns out, has paid hundreds of millions in fees to companies controlled by Lord Black and to individual executives.

They have also criticized Hollinger's delay in disclosing sales of assets to other companies controlled by Lord Black and his partners.

The charges relate to payments totaling more than $32 million made to executives and parent companies of Hollinger International, which were ultimately controlled by Lord Black.

In a number of cases, Hollinger sold newspapers to entities controlled by Lord Black and his associates for far below their market value.

Hollinger Inc. had historically received money indirectly from Hollinger International: It paid fees to the Ravelston Management Company, a holding company that was controlled by Lord Black.

Hollinger's Class B shares have 10 votes each and Hollinger Inc., a Canadian company controlled by Lord Black, owns all of them, along with 18 percent of the Class A shares.

Hollinger Inc., in turn, is controlled by Ravelston Management, another company controlled by Lord Black.

The committee also turned up more than $16 million in payments to Hollinger Inc., a Toronto-based holding company controlled by Lord Black that has voting control of the publishing company.