A Milan appeals court on Saturday ordered Silvio Berlusconi’s holding company to pay 560 million euros ($801 million) in compensation to rival CIR, dealing a further blow to the weakened Italian prime minister. The appeals court’s ruling acknowledged that a 1991 takeover battle for leading Italian publisher Arnoldo Mondadori Editore was marred by corruption but cut a previous compensation order by around a quarter. Berlusconi tried this week to pass a measure that would have suspended the penalty but had to back off because of a lack of support from coalition members and a public outcry.
