Activist shareholder Carl Icahn is attempting to sue Motorola as part of his efforts to force the company to sell its mobile division and nominate his own four board members. Icahn, the company’s second-largest shareholder, wants Motorola to hand over documents relating to its mobile division. He says this will reveal mistakes made by top executives in handling mobile handset operations. Icahn, who increased his Motorola stake to 6.5% from 5% last month, believes Motorola’s divisions are worth more than its current value as a single entity. The investor argues that the firm should sell or spin off its mobile arm into a separate entity, with a new CEO and management team.

The lawsuit comes after Icahn rejected Motorola’s offer to support just two of his four nominees to the board. Icahn reportedly said that he will not be satisfied unless Keith Meister, the 35-year-old head of Icahn Enterprises and manager of Icahn’s US$8 billion hedge fund, becomes a director. His other nominees include former Viacom boss Frank Biondi Jr, MIT semiconductor materials professor Lionel Kimerling and William Hambrecht of the WR Hambrecht investment fund. Motorola’s shareholders will meet in May to elect board members. Icahn staged an unsuccessful proxy battle for board representation last year.