Clifford Chance (CC) has expressed its sorrow at the death of its partner, Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda, a jewellery designer, following confirmation yesterday (22 August) that their bodies had been recovered from the sunken luxury yacht Bayesian off the Sicily coast.

“We are heartbroken at the tragic passing of our partner, Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda,” a CC spokesperson said. “We are deeply saddened and still coming to terms with this terrible loss. Our utmost priority is to continue to support Chris’s family at this very distressing time. Our thoughts extend to the families and loved ones of all those affected.”

The couple had been missing since the early hours of Monday morning when the Bayesian sank during a freak storm. Their bodies were recovered on Wednesday along with those of Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy, a psychotherapist and trustee of gynaecological cancer research charity The Eve Appeal. The body of the yacht’s owner, British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, was recovered on Thursday, while the body of his 18-year-old daughter Hannah was retrieved this morning.

The Morvillos and the other guests had been celebrating Lynch’s acquittal in June by a US federal jury of fraud charges over the $11bn sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011. 

Dubbed one of Silicon Valley’s largest-ever fraud cases, the saga had dominated Morvillo’s legal career from the moment Lynch instructed Clifford Chance to act for him following HP’s $8.8bn write down of the value of Autonomy in November 2012.

Among the 15 survivors was another Clifford Chance lawyer, London-based senior associate Ayla Ronald, who was part of the core trial team which successfully defended Lynch. She was included in a list of team members thanked by Morvillo in a LinkedIn post celebrating the not guilty jury verdict in June.

“I am in awe at the enthusiastic commitment you brought to the table every day,” he wrote. “A direct line runs from you to the verdict.”

Morvillo started out his career at Weil Gotshal & Manges before spending six years as an assistant attorney for the Southern District of New York, following in the footsteps of his father, renowned white-collar defence lawyer Robert G. Morvillo, who led its securities fraud unit and criminal division before becoming a name partner at Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason Anello & Bohrer.

In 2005 Christopher Morvillo joined his father’s firm as a principal before taking up residence at CC in November 2011.

In a podcast posted earlier this month and subsequently uploaded onto YouTube, Morvillo told criminal defence lawyer David Markus that his work for Lynch had covered a third of his career. “It has been a constant presence in my life for the last 12 years,” he explained.

Describing the moment the jury delivered their not guilty verdict on all counts, he said: “It was this electric moment, I have never seen anything like it in a courtroom before. Grown people sobbing, hugging… people clapping, it was remarkable.”

Among those paying tribute to Morvillo on LinkedIn was Morrison & Foerster’s former chairman Larren Nashelsky, who described him as a “wonder guy”, adding: “Family man first and amazing lawyer second. I knew Chris since the early ’90s and he never changed in all the years we knew each other.”

Maddy Malik, director of global internal communications at White & Case, wrote: “It was an honour and a privilege to have known Chris – one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever worked with, and also one of the kindest, most generous, humble and respectful.”

In a joint statement the families of Christopher and Neda Morvillo said: “Chris and Neda were each widely respected for their professional successes, Chris as a distinguished attorney and Neda as a skilled jewellery designer, but their true talents were that of mother and father, son and daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt and dear friends to so many.”

The CC spokesperson said: “We wish to express our deepest condolences and our love and support to Chris’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time. We also want to thank the Italian authorities and rescue teams for everything they have done.”

The seven victims of the sinking also included chef Recaldo Thomas, whose body was recovered on Monday.