One Anecdote That Shows How Ousted CEO Dov Charney Horribly Mismanaged American Apparel

But it was his mismanagement of the business that led to his firing, reports Suzanne Kapner at The Wall Street Journal, noting that the business "had fallen into almost complete disarray."

Charney insisted on signing the hundreds of checks to vendors every month, leaving management unable to pay debts until he got around to it, according to Kapner.

"They were delivered by assistants to his office or home, where they would pile up for weeks before resurfacing in the accounts-payable department," Kapner writes, citing anonymous sources within the company. "Mr. Charney purposely held the checks while he investigated whether the amounts were correct, said a person familiar with his thinking."

American Apparel had also reduced the legal department to two people, according to WSJ.

Despite his humiliating public ouster, Charney isn't going down without a fight.

The estranged CEO has started a campaign to get his job back and has said he will seek $25 million in damages if he's unsuccessful.

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