Oracle hired Mr. Hurd to succeed Charles E. Phillips Jr.

Oracle hired Mr. Hurd to succeed Charles E. Phillips Jr. In an e-mail to The New York Times, Mr. Ellison, a close friend of Mr. Hurd’s, lambasted H.P.’s board for the way it had handled the departure. Mr. Hurd left H.P. after the board investigated his relationship with a marketing contractor and found that her name had been left off expense report items and that Mr. Hurd had violated the company’s code of conduct.

“In losing Mark Hurd, the H.P. board failed to act in the best interest of H.P.’s employees, shareholders, customers and partners,” Mr. Ellison wrote.

This month, Oracle hired Mr. Hurd to succeed Charles E. Phillips Jr. as a president at the company. While the legal matter has been resolved, Oracle and H.P. will continue to have a more tense business relationship than in the past.