Hewlett Packard confirms it will continue to sue Mike Lynch’s family for $4 billion after he died in a tragic yacht sinking

Mike Lynch, the late former chief executive of Autonomy Corp.

Hewlett Packard said that it won’t drop its lawsuit with late tech tycoon Mike Lynch’s family.

This news comes days after Lynch died in a tragic yacht sinking off the coast of Sicily. Lynch, along with seven others, including his daughter and his top attorney, drowned when his superyacht “Bayesian” sank.

Before his death, Lynch had been embroiled in a long-drawn legal battle with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). HPE bought his company Autonomy in 2011 and later accused Lynch of valuing it inaccurately.

An HPE spokesperson said on Monday that the tech group would pursue the up to $4 billion lawsuit, which is now in its 13th year.

Angela Bacares, Lynch’s wife who survived the yacht tragedy, is now expected to inherit her late husband’s fight with HPE, Fortune reported.

“In 2022, an English High Court judge ruled that HPE had substantially succeeded in its civil fraud claims against Dr Lynch and Mr Hussain,” the spokesperson said in a Monday statement to the Associated Press.

“A damages hearing was held in February 2024 and the judge’s decision regarding damages due to HPE will arrive in due course,” they added to the outlet. “It is HPE’s intention to follow the proceedings through to their conclusion.”

The Monday statement comes after the group initially sent a statement to several media outlets declining to comment on legal matters in light of the tragedy.

“We do not think it appropriate to comment on legal matters in these tragic circumstances,” the spokesperson said, per Fortune. We’re saddened by this tragic event and our thoughts are with the families and friends of all the victims.”

The yacht tragedy took place just weeks before Lynch and his former vice president of finance, Stephen Chamberlain, were acquitted of all charges by a San Francisco jury in June.

The indictment accused Lynch and Chamberlain of falsifying financial documents, lying to auditors and regulators, and suppressing people who criticized Autonomy’s financial practices.

A representative of HP did not immediately respond to a request for comment from B-17 sent outside regular business hours.