Hewlett Packard (HP) is seeking $1.7bn (£1.3bn) in damages from the estate of the late entrepreneur Mike Lynch, whose yacht sank last year, resulting in his death, the High Court has heard.
HP – now operating as Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE) – acquired Lynch’s software company Autonomy in 2011, but alleges that Lynch and the firm’s former Chief Financial Officer, Sushovan Hussain, misrepresented the company’s financial status ahead of the acquisition.
During a 2019 trial, HPE claimed that Lynch had artificially inflated Autonomy’s revenues, which it argued led to an $8.8bn write-down of the company’s valuation shortly after purchase. In 2022, Mr Justice Hildyard ruled that HPE had “substantially succeeded” in its civil case, although it was expected to receive significantly less than the $5bn it initially pursued. Earlier this year, the court determined that the losses suffered amounted to approximately £700m.
Lynch and his teenage daughter Hannah were among seven people who lost their lives when his yacht, The Bayesian, capsized and sank off the coast of Sicily last August during severe storms.
The current hearing in London, which commenced on Tuesday, will decide whether Lynch’s estate is permitted to appeal the rulings issued in 2022 and 2025.
In written submissions, Patrick Goodall, representing HPE, argued that Lynch’s estate is liable for $1.7bn, including around $761m in accrued interest. Goodall stated that Lynch had “not only perpetrated an enormous fraud, but lied about it at every stage”. He noted that the claimants had incurred nearly £150m in legal costs and are seeking almost £113m of those expenses from Lynch’s estate. Goodall argued that the estate should not be granted permission to appeal the prior judgments.
Conversely, Richard Hill, acting for Lynch’s estate, criticised the $761m interest figure as “excessive” and based on a flawed calculation, suggesting that a more “legally and economically rational” assessment would yield a substantially lower amount. Hill further contended that describing HPE as “victors in the litigation” was “overly simplistic”, adding that the judge had “erred in law” and that there was a compelling reason to allow an appeal.
A spokesperson for the Lynch family stated:
“Today’s hearing deals with procedural matters that do not alter the essence of the case. The core facts remain that HP’s claim was fundamentally flawed and grossly overstated.”
Separately, Mike Lynch was extradited to the United States in 2023 in relation to criminal fraud charges regarding the Autonomy sale. He was acquitted in 2024, and was reportedly celebrating the court victory onboard his yacht when the fatal sinking occurred.
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