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HP Autonomy

HP sues former Autonomy execs as fraud allegations continue to swirl

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By John Glenday | Reporter

August 5, 2014 | 2 min read

Computer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard has stepped up its legal fight against the former bosses of Autonomy, the software firm, by suing for alleged fraud after obtaining shareholder approval to do so.

The legal action is the latest twist in the long running fall out from HP’s disastrous £6.6bn purchase of the firm three years ago, which presaged a mammoth £5.2bn write-down in the firms value just a year later.

At the heart of the case is former Autonomy head Michael Lynch with Sushovan Hussain, its ex-chief financial officer, also being targeted for action.

In its case HP said: “The shareholder plaintiffs who originally sued HP's directors and officers now agree that Hussain, along with Autonomy's founder and CEO, Michael Lynch, should be held accountable for this fraud.

“The notion that (Hussain) should be permitted to intervene and challenge the substance of a settlement designed to protect the interests of the company he defrauded is ludicrous."

In a counter statement Lynch and Hussain responded: “This breathless ranting from HP is the sort of personal smear we've come to expect.As the emotional outbursts go up, the access to facts seems to go down.

"Meg Whitman (HP's CEO) is buying off a bunch of lawyers so she doesn't have to answer charges of incompetence and misdirection in front of a judge and jury."

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