It comes after Dr Mike Lynch on Friday misplaced a multibillion-dollar fraud motion over the sale of his software program firm Autonomy to Hewlett Packard (HP) in 2011.
He’s accused of intentionally overstating the worth of his enterprise earlier than it was acquired by the American know-how big.
HP, now Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), sued Dr Lynch and Autonomy’s former chief monetary officer, Sushovan Hussain, for round 5 billion US {dollars} (£3.7 billion), following its buy of the Cambridge-based agency for 11.1 billion US {dollars} (£8.3 billion) greater than a decade in the past.
Asserting his determination on the case on the Excessive Courtroom in London on Friday, Mr Justice Hildyard mentioned HP had “considerably succeeded” in its varied claims towards the 2 males – however is prone to obtain “considerably much less” than the quantity claimed in damages.
Dr Lynch has denied all costs towards him and has signalled he intends to attraction towards the Excessive Courtroom decide’s determination.
That call coincided with a deadline for the House Secretary to determine whether or not Dr Lynch needs to be extradited to the US.
A House Workplace spokesperson mentioned: “Underneath the Extradition Act 2003, the Secretary of State should signal an extradition order if there aren’t any grounds to ban the order being made. Extradition requests are solely despatched to the House Secretary as soon as a decide decides it will possibly proceed after contemplating varied features of the case.
“On January 28, following consideration by the courts, the extradition of Dr Michael Lynch to the US was ordered.”
On Wednesday, Ms Patel was given till midnight on Friday to determine on his extradition after a Excessive Courtroom decide dominated towards Dr Lynch’s authorized problem over a beforehand set deadline.
Ms Patel had wished to think about Mr Justice Hildyard’s ruling on the Excessive Courtroom civil declare earlier than making an extradition determination.
US authorities declare Dr Lynch intentionally overstated the worth of his enterprise, which specialised in software program to type by massive knowledge units.
Chris Morvillo, of regulation agency Clifford Likelihood – representing Dr Lynch, mentioned in an announcement after the House Workplace announcement: “Dr Lynch firmly denies the costs introduced towards him within the US and can proceed to battle to ascertain his innocence.
“He’s a British citizen who ran a British firm in Britain topic to British legal guidelines and guidelines and that’s the place the matter needs to be resolved.
“This isn’t the tip of the battle — removed from it.
“Dr Lynch will now file an attraction to the Excessive Courtroom in London.”
Earlier, Kelwin Nicholls, one other lawyer at Clifford Likelihood representing the entrepreneur, mentioned after the Excessive Courtroom decide’s determination: “As we speak’s consequence is disappointing and Dr Lynch intends to attraction.
“We are going to examine the complete judgment over the approaching weeks. We notice the decide’s issues over the reliability of a few of HP’s witnesses.
“We additionally notice the decide’s expectation that any loss suffered by HP shall be considerably lower than the 5 billion {dollars} (£3.8 billion) claimed.”
Mr Justice Hildyard delivered a abstract of his conclusions within the case on Friday, greater than two years after the beginning of what was believed to be the UK’s greatest civil fraud trial – which was heard over 9 months in 2019.
He mentioned Dr Lynch and Mr Hussain gave a “deceptive image” of the enterprise, together with by “reselling” {hardware} with a view to allow Autonomy to cowl shortfalls in software program income.
The decide mentioned: “The aim of the {hardware} promoting technique was to satisfy market expectations of income upkeep and development, by deceptive the market as to the true market place of Autonomy.
“These loss-making transactions weren’t commercially justified on any foundation.
“The justifications superior by the defendants had been not more than pretexts to extend said income within the accounts.
“The technique was not for the aim of elevating software program income gross sales. That justification was a pretence, common principally for the audit committee and Deloitte, who wouldn’t have permitted the accounting remedy with out the pretence.
“Each concealment of the {hardware} gross sales and their true value in Autonomy’s accounts and different printed info had been needed as a result of revelation of the Autonomy’s use of {hardware} gross sales, and the erosion of gross margin, would have nullified their true objective.
“This might have uncovered that Autonomy’s software program enterprise was not producing the accelerating income and income which the market thought it was, and which closely influenced its value.”
The decide mentioned Autonomy was based in 1996 out of an organization referred to as Cambridge Neurodynamics, an early enterprise into utilizing “machine studying” to develop software program methods which Dr Lynch had explored in his PhD thesis at Cambridge College.
His full judgment within the case is anticipated to be printed at a later date however stays embargoed till then.
In the course of the civil trial in 2019, HP mentioned the write-down of Autonomy’s worth was as a result of it had discovered “severe accounting improprieties”.
Laurence Rabinowitz QC, representing HP, mentioned Dr Lynch and Mr Hussain had knowingly prompted Autonomy to “have interaction in a programme of widespread and systematic fraudulent” accounting practices forward of the sale.
He mentioned Autonomy had been “assembly its income and income development targets by merely shopping for and promoting third-party {hardware}, with none connection to Autonomy software program”.
Mr Rabinowitz added the agency additionally used “a wide range of different fraudulent units” to both speed up income or to invent income that by no means existed within the first place.
The 2 males denied the claims and Dr Lynch launched a counter-claim for no less than 125 million US {dollars} (£95 million) in damages towards HP for “a collection of false, deceptive and unfair public statements” about his alleged duty for supposed accounting irregularities and misrepresentations at Autonomy.
He accused HP of “making a collection of far-fetched allegations of fraud and scapegoating”, arguing it had “destroyed some of the profitable and promising software program corporations of its time as a consequence of administration incompetence, politics and infighting”.
Dr Lynch, from Suffolk, argued the know-how big was attempting to make him “a scapegoat for his or her failures”.
Mr Hussain was convicted in April 2018 within the US of wire fraud and different crimes associated to Autonomy’s sale and was sentenced to 5 years in jail.
Within the separate prison proceedings within the US, Dr Lynch faces costs of securities fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy in a federal court docket over the sale of Autonomy.