Mike Lynch's estate refused permission to appeal in UK HP-Autonomy case

By Sam Tobin

LONDON, March 24 (Reuters) - The estate of late British tech tycoon Mike Lynch was on Tuesday refused permission to appeal a ruling by London's High Court that he owed damages to Hewlett Packard Enterprise HPE.N over its acquisition of his firm Autonomy.

The U.S. technology giant Hewlett Packard is trying to recoup losses arising from its 2011 acquisition of Autonomy for $11.1 billion from the estate of Lynch, who died in 2024 when his luxury yacht sank off Sicily.

HP accused Lynch and Autonomy's former chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain, of inflating the firm's value before the takeover. HP wrote down Autonomy's worth by $8.8 billion within a year of the purchase.

In 2022, the High Court largely ruled against Lynch and Hussain over the deal, though a judge said HP would get considerably less than the $5 billion originally sought.

Lawyers for Lynch's estate sought permission to appeal against the High Court's ruling on liability and a later ruling on damages. They were refused permission to appeal in a judgment on Tuesday, though can apply directly to the Court of Appeal.

HP said the ruling awarded it a total of around $1.24 billion in damages and interest and "brings us another step closer to resolution of the dispute".

The estate's lawyers did not immediately comment. A spokesperson for the Lynch family said they were disappointed with the court's refusal to allow an appeal.

LATEST RULING FOLLOWS LYNCH'S 2024 DEATH

The High Court ruled last year that HP suffered losses of nearly 698 million pounds – just over $1 billion at 2011 exchange rates – as it would have paid less for Autonomy had it known its "true financial position".

HP is also entitled to interest on its losses up to May 2023, which the company said took the total to $1.24 billion, less than the $1.79 billion it had been seeking.

Lynch, once hailed as Britain's answer to Bill Gates, always maintained his innocence and blamed HP for failing to integrate Autonomy. He was cleared of related criminal charges in the United States in June 2024.

That acquittal "exposed the truth", a spokesperson for the Lynch family said on Tuesday, adding: "The damage to Autonomy was the result of HP's own actions and failures, not wrongdoing at Autonomy."

Lynch, 59, died in August 2024 when his yacht sank off Sicily during a trip to celebrate his acquittal. His 18-year-old daughter Hannah also died in the accident.