Musk-Twitter Oct. 17 trial halted by judge, giving Tesla CEO more time to seal $44B deal
Twitter said earlier this week that it intends to close the deal at the agreed-upon price
Elon Musk: 'Twitter will not take yes for answer'
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A judge in Delaware has halted Twitter's pending litigation against Elon Musk, granting the Tesla CEO more time to close his $44 billion acquisition deal after previously trying to back out of it.
Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, head of the Delaware Chancery Court, said Thursday that Musk has until Oct. 28 to close the deal. A trial previously set for Oct. 17 will happen in November if he doesn’t, she said.
The announcement came after Musk’s team said in documents filed with Delaware’s Court of Chancery on Thursday that Twitter should halt the Oct. 17 court date so the financing can be pulled together, and the deal can be wrapped up before the end of the month.
Elon Musk sent a letter to Twitter on Tuesday stating that he intends to proceed with his original $54.20 per share offer agreed to by the parties in April. (Patrick Pleul - Pool/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The Twitter application is seen on a digital device. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull / AP Newsroom)
A sign is pictured outside Twitter headquarters in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn / AP Newsroom)
"Twitter will not take yes for an answer," said the court filing signed by Musk attorney Edward Micheletti. "Astonishingly, they have insisted on proceeding with this litigation, recklessly putting the deal at risk and gambling with their stockholders' interests."
Musk's lawyer, Alex Spiro, told FOX Business in a statement that Twitter "offered Mr. Musk billions off the transaction price."
"Mr. Musk refused because Twitter attempted to put certain self-serving conditions on the deal," he said. "Any statement to the contrary is a lie."
Musk sent a letter to Twitter on Tuesday stating that he intends to proceed with his original $54.20 per share offer agreed to by the parties in April. The letter noted that the move depends on receipt of the deal's debt financing and provided the Delaware Court of Chancery stays Twitter's lawsuit against him and adjourns the upcoming legal trial.
FOX Business has reached out to Twitter for comment.
Twitter said earlier this week that it intends to close the deal at the agreed-upon price, but the two sides are still booked for an Oct. 17 trial in Delaware over Musk's earlier attempts to terminate the deal.
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The judge presiding over the case said Wednesday she would continue to press on toward the trial because, at the time, neither side had formally moved to stop it.
Musk's attorneys said the trial should be adjourned to leave more time for Musk to secure the financing.
Since Twitter sued Musk to force him to complete the purchase after he tried to back out four months ago, it is unlikely the San Francisco-based company — whose shareholders have voted to approve the deal — will walk away from the agreement.
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Rather, it's likely Twitter is seeking assurances from Musk's side that this time he's serious and won't walk away again.
FOX Business' Lucas Manfredi and The Associated Press contributed to this report.