One law for them... anger as Priti says tycoon can be deported for US trial
THE UK-US extradition treaty has been declared ‘not fit for purpose’ as a British tech tycoon faces removal to America to answer criminal fraud charges.
Dr Mike Lynch, the founder of specialist software firm Autonomy, lost what is believed to be the UK’s biggest-ever civil fraud trial on Friday.
The Home Secretary Priti Patel ordered his extradition hours after a High Court judge found Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) had ‘substantially succeeded’ in its claim against the scandal-hit entrepreneur over the sale of his firm. But senior MPs and legal experts were quick to criticise the move. Tory MP Tom Tugendhat, chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, last night said: ‘Mike Lynch’s case is another sign that the extradition treaty signed by the Blair government is unequal.
‘US prosecutors can force our citizens to America while Americans are much harder to bring to justice in this country. Mr Tugendhat, who yesterday threw his hat in the ring to be the next leader of the Tory party, called for the treaty to be ‘rebalanced’. ‘It’s not acceptable to have Brits at a disadvantage,’ he added.
Dr Lynch, who was once dubbed Britain’s answer to Bill Gates, sold his firm to US giant HPE for £8.3billion in 2011. But the company accused him of masterminding an elaborate scheme to inflate Autonomy’s value before the sale.
The multi-billion pound fraud action brought by HPE concluded at the High Court in London on Friday when Mr Justice Hildyard said HPE had ‘substantially succeeded’ – but he added that the company would receive ‘substantially less’ than the £3.7 billion it claimed in damages.
Now Ms Patel has agreed to extradite Dr Lynch, the tycoon has 14 days to appeal – which could trigger another lengthy court process.
Dr Lynch, 56, could face up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty in the US. He has always denied the accusations and signalled on Friday that he would appeal.
Robert Dougans, partner and head of dispute resolution at law firm Preiskel & Co, said: ‘The treaty is not fit for purpose. It is one-sided. It allows people to be sent to America for things that happened here.
‘For me, it’s a basic point. I’m British, if I do something here it is for the courts in this country to punish me or not. I do find the jurisdictional overreach of the United States concerning.’
He added: ‘Dr Lynch may not be Snow White, but my view is that this is primarily a business dispute.
‘He sold a British company in a contract governed by English law with the English courts to police it.
‘It strikes me as insane that a prosecution may now happen in the States.’