Setback for Elon Musk: Justice accepted a request from Twitter and the trial already has a start date

Elon Musk (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)Elon Musk lost a fight to delay Twitter’s lawsuit against him when a Delaware judge on Tuesday set a trial for October, citing the “cloud of uncertainty” over the social media company after that the billionaire backed out of a deal to buy it. “The delay threatens irreparable harm,” said Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, chief judge of the Delaware Court of Chancery, which handles many high-profile business disputes. “The longer the delay, the higher the risk.” “The reality is that the delay threatens irreparable damage to sellers,” he said, referring to Twitter. He asked the parties to draw up the trial schedule, which he set at five days. Musk requested a two-week trial in February, and Twitter requested a four-day trial. Twitter had requested an expedited trial in September, while Musk’s team asked to wait until early next year due to the complexity of the case. McCormick said Musk’s team underestimated the Delaware court’s ability to “quickly process complex litigation.” Twitter is trying to force the billionaire to make good on his April promise to buy the social media giant for $44 billion. and the company wants it to happen quickly because it says the ongoing dispute is hurting its business. Musk, the world’s richest man, promised to pay Twitter $54.20 per share but now wants to back out of the deal. Twitter has sued Elon Musk on Tuesday for breaching the company’s $44 billion purchase contract, calling the tycoon’s strategy a “model of hypocrisy,” according to court documents. “It’s an attempted sabotage. He is doing everything he can to dismantle Twitter,” said attorney William Savitt, who is representing Twitter in the Delaware Court of Chancery before court chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick. The hearing was held virtually after McCormick said he tested positive for COVID-19. Musk has claimed the company has failed to provide adequate information about the number of fake Twitter accounts or “spam bots” and has failed to meet its obligations. under the deal by laying off top managers and laying off a significant number of employees. Savitt said the contested merger deal and Musk’s tweets disparaging the company were hurting business and questioned Musk’s request to delay the deal. trial, asking “if the real plan is to run out of time.” “He’s betting on getting out of the deal he signed,” Savitt said. But the idea that the Tesla CEO is trying to hurt Twitter is “absurd. He has no interest in harming the company,” said Musk’s attorney, Andrew Rossman, noting that he is Twitter’s second-largest shareholder with a stake far larger than the entire board. Savitt stressed the importance of an expedited test. starting in September so Twitter can make important business decisions that affect everything from employee retention to supplier and customer relationships. Rossman said more time is needed because it’s “one of the largest private deals in history.” involving a “company that has a lot of data that needs to be analyzed. Billions of shares must be analyzed on its platform.” (With information from AP and Reuters)Continue reading:Elon Musk said he canceled the purchase of Twitter: he accused the company of not providing all the information he requestedTwitter shares are collapsed after Elon Musk called off the $44 billion purchase From announcing to withdrawing from the Twitter purchase, Elon Musk lost more than twice what the company is worth