Twitter sues Elon Musk after abandoning takeover deal

Twitter is suing Elon Musk to ensure that the $44 billion takeover deal goes through after all. Musk withdrew from the agreement to take over the social medium last Friday.

According to Twitter, Musk has breached his contractual obligations by withdrawing from the deal, according to court documents filed with the Delaware court. “Three months after the agreement, Musk is refusing to honor his obligations to Twitter and its shareholders because the deal is no longer in his personal interest. After orchestrating a public spectacle (…) Musk apparently believes that, unlike any other party subject to Delaware’s contract law is free to change its mind, defame the company, disrupt its business, destroy stock value and simply walk away.”

Musk has not yet responded substantively to Twitter’s complaint, but writes on the social medium shortly after news of the lawsuit came out, “Oh, the irony, lol.” Earlier it was announced that the Tesla CEO had doubts about the acquisition of Twitter because of the excessive amount of spam bot accounts.

For the time being, on the other hand, Musk would have few legal arguments to be able to get out of the contract, argue experts to the Financial Times. It is not clear what that will mean for the deal. Musk and Twitter could come to an agreement, but the deal could also be upheld in court. It could also be that the clause in the contract, which requires Musk to pay Twitter a billion dollars in compensation for any damage suffered, must be honored.