HP 2014 Annual Report Download - page 174

HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (Continued)
Note 15: Litigation and Contingencies (Continued)
•In re HP ERISA Litigation consists of three consolidated putative class actions filed beginning on
December 6, 2012 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
alleging, among other things, that from August 18, 2011 to November 22, 2012, the defendants
breached their fiduciary obligations to HP’s 401(k) Plan and its participants and thereby violated
Sections 404(a)(1) and 405(a) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as
amended, by concealing negative information regarding the financial performance of Autonomy
and HP’s enterprise services business and by failing to restrict participants from investing in HP
stock. On August 16, 2013, HP filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. On March 31, 2014, the
court granted HP’s motion to dismiss this action with leave to amend. On July 16, 2014, the
plaintiffs filed a second amended complaint containing substantially similar allegations and
seeking substantially similar relief as the first amended complaint. HP moved to dismiss the
second amended complaint and a hearing on the motion is scheduled for January 23, 2015.
•Vincent Ho v. Margaret C. Whitman, et al.is a lawsuit filed on January 22, 2013 in California
Superior Court alleging, among other things, that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties
and wasted corporate assets in connection with HP’s acquisition of Autonomy and by causing
HP to repurchase its own stock at allegedly inflated prices between August 2011 and October
2012. On April 22, 2013, the court stayed the lawsuit pending resolution of the In re Hewlett-
Packard Shareholder Derivative Litigation matter in federal court. Two additional derivative
actions, James Gould v. Margaret C. Whitman, et al. and Leroy Noel v. Margaret C. Whitman, et
al., were filed in California Superior Court on July 26, 2013 and August 16, 2013, respectively,
containing substantially similar allegations and seeking substantially similar relief. Those actions
also have been stayed pending resolution of the In re Hewlett-Packard Shareholder Derivative
Litigation matter. If the settlement of the federal derivative case is approved, it will result in a
release of the claims asserted in all three actions other than claims asserted against Michael
Lynch, the former chief executive officer of Autonomy.
•Cook v. Whitman, et al. is a lawsuit filed on March 18, 2014 in the Delaware Chancery Court,
alleging, among other things, that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties and wasted
corporate assets in connection with HP’s acquisition of Autonomy. On May 15, 2014, HP moved
to dismiss or stay the Cook matter. On July 22, 2014, the Delaware Chancery Court stayed the
motion pending the United States District Court’s hearing on preliminary approval of the
proposed settlement in the In re Hewlett-Packard Shareholder Derivative Litigation matter. If the
District Court approves the settlement, it will result in a release of all the claims asserted in the
Cook matter other than those asserted against Michael Lynch, Sushovan Hussain, the former
chief financial officer of Autonomy, and Deloitte LLP.
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