But Peter Bourhill, who claimed at an industrial tribunal into his dismissal that he earned more than £20m for the Blackpool FC owner, may not see a penny of the cash after the firm he has claimed against was liquidated.

He today accused Mr Oyston of trying to avoid paying up and said: "This is about justice, not money."

High-flyer Mr Bourhill, 49, was chief executive of Oyston Publishing and later Ridings Publishing.

He had previously held high-ranking positions with The Times newspaper and Thomson Financial Services.

The Scot claimed at the tribunal that he transformed Oyston Publishing into a successful enterprise from a debt-ridden company which was £5m in the red.

It was later sold for a figure believed to be in the region of £18m.

When Oyston sold the firm, which ran the magazine Lancashire Life and other titles, Mr Bourhill stayed with the magazine, continuing as chief executive for new owners Archant.

But, he told the tribunal, which was held at Alexandra House in Manchester, he was headhunted by Oyston and, after resigning from Archant and spending 12 months on gardening leave, went back to work for the tycoon.

He was in charge of titles which rivalled Lancashire Life, including Lancashire Magazine.

Things turned sour though and, at the industrial tribunal over his dismissal yesterday, said he was "continually firefighting".

He told the court of problems with Mr Oyston's daughter Natalie and branded her "unprofessional", which caused tension between him and Mr Oyston.

Things came to a head, Mr Bourhill told the three-man panel sitting on the tribunal, when he says he was asked to take a large cut in salary, bigger than the directors at the company, including Coronation Street star William Roache – aka Ken Barlow – and radio and TV star Stuart Hall.

He initially refused and told the court his salary also went unpaid in December 2008.

Mr Oyston, he told the court, was also angry he had refused to invest his own money into the company.

The court then heard that in January, after attempting to notify directors he was concerned the company was trading while insolvent, he was notified of his dismissal.

After four weeks of shock and dismay, he said, he decided to sign-on and look for a job.

Now, on the verge of starting a new publishing venture, Mr Bourhill has been awarded £234,549 by the tribunal panel, who recorded a unanimous decision.

Panel Chairman, Judge Stuart Robertson, said: "The panel concludes that on the balance of probabilities Mr Bourhill was unfairly dismissed."

But the court heard that on Friday, solicitors for Mr Bourhill were informed Riding Publishing was in liquidation.

If the company no longer exists, Mr Bourhill may face more legal battles to try to get any money from the tribunal's award.