PARIS (AP) — France's top court has ruled that International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde must stand trial in France over a 2008 arbitration ruling that handed 400 million euros to a politically-connected business magnate.

Lagarde, who was French finance minister at the time of the deal for tycoon Bernard Tapie, is accused of negligence in the case. She has denied wrongdoing.

A special court ruled last December that Lagarde should stand trial, but she appealed. France's Court of Cassation on Friday rejected the appeal.

The unusually generous arbitration deal, paid from public funds, prompted years of legal disputes that remain unresolved.