...The trial, plus interviews from depositions, provides an unusual behind-the-scenes peek into the brutal sport of corporate boardroom politics. In particular, the case shows how Mr. Eisner wielded power during his controversial 20-year run at Disney and clung to that power even as the company's performance sagged.

Time and again, testimony in the Ovitz case -- including Mr. Eisner's own account -- illustrates how he operated with little regard for conventional rules of corporate play. He allowed rivalries to fester until they become irreparable, lied publicly when it was convenient, and once hatched a plot with a director to report details of a private conversation with Mr. Ovitz.