Lawsuit Claims $128 Million in Severance from Musk and X
In a shocking turn of events, a group of former Twitter senior executives has filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk and X Corp, formerly Twitter, demanding over $128 million in alleged unpaid severance payments. The plaintiffs, including former CEO Parag Agrawal, chief financial officer Ned Segal, chief legal counsel Vijaya Gadde, and general counsel Sean Edgett, claim that they were fired in 2022 shortly after the takeover was complete.
The court documents reveal that Musk fired the executives, accusing them of “gross negligence and willful misconduct.” However, the plaintiffs argue that no evidence was provided to support these allegations before they lost their jobs. They allege that Musk’s refusal to pay their benefits is part of a larger pattern of denying Twitter’s former employees the compensation they are due.
According to the ex-Twitter executives’ lawyers, Musk’s statements to his official biographer, Walter Isaacson, indicate his intent to withhold their pay. They point to Musk’s comment that he would “hunt every single one of” Twitter’s executives and directors until the day they die as proof of his malicious intentions. The court documents further state that Musk bragged to Isaacson about cheating Twitter’s executives out of their severance benefits to save himself $200 million.
It is worth noting that Musk previously tried to back out of the deal to acquire Twitter, accusing the company of providing false information about the number of spam and fake accounts. Twitter retaliated by filing a lawsuit against Musk to compel him to complete the deal. Eventually, Musk completed the $44 billion acquisition of Twitter in October 2022.
The lawsuit alleges that Musk is seeking revenge against the executives and is repeatedly refusing to honor clear contractual commitments to recover some of his expenses. The complaint paints a damning picture of Musk, stating that he believes the rules don’t apply to him and uses his wealth and power to disregard anyone who disagrees with him. The plaintiffs’ lawyers argue that their clients are owed a year’s salary and stock options under a severance plan, which would amount to millions of dollars for each executive.
The Epoch Times reached out to X Corp for comment on the legal complaint, but there has been no response so far.
This lawsuit raises serious concerns about the treatment of former employees and the ethics of corporate acquisitions. It remains to be seen how the court will rule on this matter, but one thing is clear: the battle between these former Twitter executives and Elon Musk is far from over. The outcome of this case could have profound implications for the future of employment practices and corporate accountability.
