by lawyers acting for his father Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kaszon in an epic court case in Bermuda.

Georg, also known as Heini junior, is being called to the stand by his father's lawyers who want to prove that he can no longer be trusted to look after the interest of his family or the Thyssen industrial empire.

The 78-year-old baron is suing his son for control of the Bermuda-based trust fund worth $2.7 billion. He put Georg in charge of the fund in 1983, but now wants to regain control and claims his son owes him $232 million, in arrears, with inflation and loss of value.

But it could be up to six months before Georg, 49, is brought to the stand, in what promises to be a long protracted civil case in the Supreme Court in Hamilton.

According to Michael Crystal, QC, acting for the baron, he will bring Georg to the stand in March or April next year.

And Georg will be quizzed about his involvement in the setting up of the Bermuda based Continuity Trust and his relationship with his father.

Baron's son could be witness The baron's lawyers have claimed that Georg is "amoral'' and have been implying that he tricked his father into signing over his company too hastily.

Father and son have not spoken for three years, and the bad blood between the pair is set to cost millions in the courts.

Some have blamed Georg's mother, Princess Teresa von Lippe the baron's first wife, for fanning the flames of the dispute.

The baron's present wife -- his fifth, former beauty queen Carmen (Tita) Cervera, has made allegations which question whether Georg actually is the baron's son.

There is no love lost between Georg and Tita. Georg, has reportedly disapproved of his father's wife since they married in 1985 and Tita told the European magazine earlier this year: "Georg is keeping the dirt well hidden.

I get the feeling that this man has never loved his father.'' Tita, as she is known in the Spanish gossip columns, says Ivan Batthany, the former husband of the baron's sister, is the real father of Georg.

She has pointed to the physical likeness of the two men and in the past has claimed she is to ask for DNA tests to prove her point.

The baroness is a colourful character who won the 1961 Miss Spain beauty contest and went on to marry Lex Barker, the Hollywood actor who played Tarzan.

She will get nothing from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Group as things stand now, but could be in line for a large chunk of the trust if the baron regains control.

The marriage between the baron and Georg's mother ended with the baron claiming she was "insufferable'' -- but inherited 400 paintings from her father.

Young Georg went to live with his mother, and it was only in 1978 that father and son spent any time together when he went to work in the family business.

The relationship grew and developed until the baron retired and handed over the business to his son in 1983, ensuring he himself would be guaranteed an annual fee of 40 million Dutch gilders a year. But father and son have not spoken since a tense 75th birthday party held at his Swiss palace, Villa Favorita on the shores of Lugano lake. The two men do not even communicate through their lawyers any more.

Georg is described as a press shy bachelor, who will not enjoy the public grillings by Mr. Crystal.

He runs the business empire from Monte Carlo, and is said to be so dedicated to the running of the business that he takes very little time off to enjoy the fruits of his labours.