HP’s Ongoing Pursuit of Mike Lynch’s Grieving Family for $4 Billion Confirmed

After a 13-year legal battle between tech giant Hewlett Packard and Mike Lynch, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has announced its intention to pursue legal action against Lynch’s family for up to $4 billion. The dispute stems from HPE’s acquisition of Lynch’s Autonomy group for $11.7 billion in 2011, later writing down the deal’s value by $8.8 billion due to “accounting irregularities.” Despite Lynch being acquitted of fraud charges in a U.S. criminal trial in June, HPE won a civil trial against him in the U.K., where a judge ruled that he was likely aware of accounting fraud at Autonomy. Though Lynch has recently passed away, HPE plans to move forward in seeking damages from his estate, despite the estate likely not being worth $4 billion. Pursuing a defendant’s family after their death is permissible under UK law, allowing for Lynch’s widow, Bacares, to continue his battle with HPE as they await the judge’s decision on damages later this year.