Tokyo, Dec. 1 (Jiji Press)—A ruling on a shareholder derivative lawsuit against Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. <9501> over the March 2011 nuclear accident at its Fukushima No. 1 power plant will be handed down on July 13 next year.

In the lawsuit, shareholders are demanding that TEPCO pay 22 trillion yen in damages to take responsibility for the alleged failure of five former executives, including former Chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata, 81, to take countermeasures against tsunami.

Oral proceedings at Tokyo District Court were concluded on Tuesday, more than nine years since the lawsuit was instituted, marking a milestone in the civil suit with demand for the highest-ever compensation in Japan.