Olympus Faces Pressures as Lawyer Questions Governance Progress

Olympus Corp. is facing fresh pressures as questions about the company’s financial practices by an in-house lawyer sent the company’s shares skidding.

The medical devices manufacturer’s shares sank the most since December 2011 -- when Olympus was reeling from a $1.7 billion accounting fraud -- as the lawyer, Hiroki Sakakibara, said the company faces “serious risk” from a history of alleged financial malpractice.

“Even though Olympus promised to review its corporate governance after the 2011 scandal, the company hasn’t changed,” said Sakakibara, speaking to reporters in Tokyo Wednesday. “Maybe it’s still getting worse.”

While many of the issues Sakakibara raised ...