Stella English, who won the BBC One hit show in 2010, has lodged papers with an employment tribunal after complaining that she had been forced out of her job at Lord Sugar's business empire.
The 32-year-old mother of two, who grew up on a south London estate, was nicknamed The Ice Maiden on the programme because of her ruthlessness.
The relationship between Miss English and Lord Sugar soured when he failed to renew her £100,000 contract – her prize for winning the Apprentice – last October.
She told a newspaper at the time: "Lord Sugar has forgotten one of the first rules of business – never underestimate someone who's got nothing to lose."
But a source told the Daily Mail that Lord Sugar had tried to help Miss English by moving her to a new job when she was unhappy and that she had walked out two months before the contract ended.
After being told "You're hired", Miss English was given a job with Lord Sugar's Viglen division, which supplies IT to schools, universities and hospitals.
She was made a project manager but claimed she had to report to a manager far more junior than her. When she asked for feedback from Lord Sugar, she claimed he told her: "I'll tell you the feedback, shall I? Yeah, nice girl, don't do a lot."
She was then given a new job at another of Lord Sugar's companies YouView. When she then complained about that role, claiming it did not require too much work, Lord Sugar "went off the radar" and she did not speak to him for months.
During an interview with the Mail on Sunday last October, Miss English said Lord Sugar called her to a meeting in September where he pointed out to her that her contract would be up in December.
She said he told her: "I dunno what to do with you after that. Maybe you should think about what you want to do. I've met my obligations to you as far as I'm concerned."
In the October interview she said her time working for Lord Sugar had been "an appalling experience".
"I've wasted two years of my life when I could have been doing something better," she said.
A spokesman for Lord Sugar declined to comment, according to the Daily Mail. Miss English said she was unable to comment as she was visiting a sick relative abroad.
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