Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) is expected to file legal charges against the former executives of Autonomy, the British software maker it acquired for $11.1 billion in 2011, according to report from Bloomberg based on a court filing.
According to the court filing, a committee that evaluated Autonomy deal urged the board of directors of Hewlett-Packard to take legal actions against the former executives of the British software maker, and no action against the officers of Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ).
In November 2012, the PC maker wrote down $8.8 billion accounting charge related to the acquisition of Autonomy and revealed that it “discovered “accounting improprieties, misrepresentation, and disclosure failures” after a whistle blower came forward. The shareholders of the company filed securities fraud and derivative lawsuits against it in connection with the write down.
The court filing in the federal court of San Francisco indicated that the committee briefed the lawyers representing shareholders in a derivative lawsuit. The lawyers stated in the filing that the committee also recommended for Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) to carry out “remedial measures designed to prevent a recurrence of actions,” which damaged the company,
The shareholders of the company also filed a class action lawsuit against the former management of Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) in connection with the $8.8 billion losses incurred by the company. They claimed that the former management defrauded them by not disclosing their concerns regarding the future of the company’s business model and suddenly changes its business strategy.
Last March, Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) agreed to settle its shareholder’s class action lawsuit for $57 million, which will be deposited in an interest-bearing account within 20 days after United States District Judge Andrew Guilford in Santa Ana, California grants approval to the settlement.
“We are very happy with the settlement and are glad to have achieved this recovery for the affected HP shareholders,” said Jonathan Gardner, co-lead counsel in behalf of the shareholders in the class action lawsuit.
Autonomy’s former CEO and founder Mike Lynch repeatedly and strongly denied the allegations of Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) that his former software company practiced accounting irregularities in the deal.
Lynch defended the accounting practices of Autonomy and pointed out that all of the evidence in public domain showed the his former company was fully open and transparent with HP in the transaction as noted on a report published by Financial Times last February 17 this year.
Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) is smearing the former management of Autonomy and misleading its shareholders, according to Lynch last March.
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