A San Francisco federal jury acquitted Autonomy founder Mike Lynch of all 15 felony counts it considered in June 2024 in the U.S. criminal case connected to Hewlett-Packard’s 2011 acquisition of Autonomy. The verdict did not decide the separate UK civil case brought by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), which produced a further damages ruling in 2025.
What the U.S. jury decided
After an 11-week trial, the jury acquitted Lynch on all 15 felony counts presented against him. It also acquitted former Autonomy finance executive Stephen Chamberlain. Associated Press reported that U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer had dismissed a securities-fraud count before the jury returned its verdict, so the 15 counts are the counts on which Lynch was acquitted—not necessarily every charge initially associated with the case. Associated Press’s verdict report covers the outcome and the judge’s pre-verdict dismissal.
What prosecutors alleged
The Justice Department’s 2018 indictment alleged that Lynch, Chamberlain and others manipulated Autonomy’s revenue reporting, misled auditors, analysts, regulators and HP, and concealed certain hardware resales while presenting Autonomy as a software company. Those were prosecution allegations, not findings established against Lynch by the later U.S. jury verdict. The DOJ indictment announcement sets out the government’s account.
How the acquisition price was reported
Sources use different rounded figures for HP’s 2011 acquisition of Autonomy. Associated Press described the deal as $11 billion. A 2023 UK High Court extradition judgment referred to approximately $11.7 billion as the sale price alleged in the prosecution’s account; that figure should be read in that context, rather than as a separate finding by the 2024 U.S. jury. AP’s verdict report and the UK extradition judgment provide those respective descriptions.
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Why the UK civil case is separate
HP/HPE also pursued a civil case in England. The UK Judiciary dates the High Court’s judgment to 28 January 2022, and AP reported that the court ruled mostly in HPE’s favor that year. A civil judgment in a different legal proceeding is not erased by Lynch’s acquittal in the U.S. criminal trial: the cases had different forums and proceedings. The UK Judiciary’s case page identifies the High Court judgment.
The later damages ruling
In 2025, AP reported that a UK ruling set damages at more than £700 million, reported as $943 million. That was a development in the UK civil case, not part of the U.S. criminal verdict. AP said further proceedings concerning interest, currency conversion and a possible appeal were expected at the time of its report; the final post-report status of those matters is not established here. AP’s report on the damages ruling describes that stage of the case.
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What Lynch said after the verdict
After the acquittal, Lynch said, “I am looking forward to returning to the UK and getting back to what I love most: my family and innovating in my field,” according to Associated Press. AP reported his post-verdict statement.
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