On 21 July 2009, Lynch was signed permanently by Forest on a three-year contract for a fee of £200,000. As part of this transfer deal, Forest loaned midfielder Matt Thornhill to Brighton for an initial six months. Lynch's first team opportunities at Forest were limited, especially in his favoured position of centre-back as he has been down the pecking order to Wes Morgan, Kelvin Wilson and Luke Chambers. He has also suffered from injuries. Most of his appearances have come from filling in at left full-back. In the 2009–10 season, Lynch made only 11 starts in all competitions (3 at centre-back; 8 at left-back).