After a 12-week trial in San Francisco, British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, founder of Autonomy, has been cleared of all charges by the jury. The charges included 15 counts of fraud and conspiracy related to the 2011 acquisition of Autonomy by Hewlett-Packard.
Hewlett-Packard had accused Lynch of inflating the value of Autonomy, leading to the company overpaying $7 billion for the acquisition. This sale allowed Lynch to earn up to £500m as HP shifted its focus to software, particularly Autonomy’s data discovery software Idol.
HP later announced a $5bn write-down in 2012, blaming Autonomy for fraudulent practices. Lynch and former Autonomy CFO Sushovan Hussain were sued by HP in 2014 over the write-down.
Lynch’s legal team attributed the acquittal to an unfair extradition process and highlighted the imbalance in witness testimonies during the trial. They also pointed out the exclusion of key post-acquisition evidence that contradicted HP’s claims about Autonomy’s value.
Following the acquittal, Lynch expressed his gratitude to the jury and legal team, stating his excitement to return to the UK and focus on his family and innovation. His legal counsel praised the verdict as a rejection of the government’s overreach in the case and emphasized Lynch’s innocence.
Former Autonomy vice-president of finance Stephen Chamberlain, who was also facing charges, was acquitted alongside Lynch.