Merrill Lynch Investment Managers (MLIM) saw one of its key lines of defence in the Unilever case come under attack on Wednesday when Unilever's QC clashed with MLIM's star witness on MLIM's risk controls.

The Unilever Superannuation Fund is suing MLIM, previously known as Mercury Asset Management, for £130m ($207.3m) for negligently taking too much risk when managing £1bn for it between January 1, 1997 and March 31, 1998. MLIM contests the claim.