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The VW Group is demanding compensation from its former boss Martin Winterkorn and ex-Audi boss Rupert Stadler in connection with the diesel scandal.
The company announced this on Friday after a meeting of the supervisory board.
The inspectors had previously discussed the results of extensive tests on the recourse question.
Volkswagen stated that the two former top managers will now be “sued for damages for breaches of the duty of care under stock corporation law”.
It was not initially clear what financial extent the claims could have.
In the case of other VW board members, however, no violations were found.
The subject of the investigation was whether Winterkorn, Stadler and possibly also other executives at the time were to be accused of negligent management and control failures before the affair was discovered in September 2015 - which ultimately enabled or at least could not have prevented the manipulation of millions of diesel cars worldwide.
The law firm Gleiss Lutz advised the VW supervisory board on this topic and presented its final report this week.
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A central finding: Winterkorn failed to explain the background to the use of impermissible software functions in 2.0-liter TDI diesel engines in the years 2009 to 2015 were sold in the North American market to provide immediate and comprehensive information ”.
In addition, he did not ensure "that questions put by the US authorities in this connection are promptly and truthfully and completely answered".
Regarding Stadler's case, the company stated that from the end of September 2016 it had failed to ensure that larger diesel engines developed by Audi - they were also installed in VW Pkw and Porsche cars - "are examined with regard to inadmissible software functions" .
According to the information, claims for damages against the ex-managers Ulrich Hackenberg, Stefan Knirsch and Wolfgang Hatz should also be asserted for the subsidiaries Audi and Porsche.
With the former VW head of development Heinz-Jakob Neußer, this has already happened, it said.
Winterkorn resigned from his position as VW boss a good five and a half years ago, shortly after the emissions scandal was uncovered by US authorities and scientists.
He had stressed that he was not aware of any wrongdoing.
However, the VW supervisory board continued to pursue possible claims for damages.
During the proceedings, he had stated several times that the examination of liability claims against former or incumbent board members was "extensive".
One acts here without reservation and without regard to the person.
Winterkorn will also be on trial because of the emissions scandal.
In mid-September, the trial against him and four other executives, some of whom were former, is due to begin in Braunschweig for suspected commercial and gang fraud.
The district court recently postponed the start because of the corona situation.
Stadler is already standing in front of the Munich district court because of a possible joint responsibility for the manipulated exhaust gas values.