Twitter wins fight to fast-track Elon Musk deal trial
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Twitter's trial for its lawsuit against Elon Musk will take place over five days in October, the Delaware Chancery Court decided following a hearing in which both parties made the case for their preferred timelines.
Why it matters: This is much closer to Twitter's preferred timeline. The judge sided with the company's arguments that delays will further harm its business.
- She also noted that in this particular court, a trial is only one event in case — there are post-trial briefs, bench decisions, appeals, and more steps until a final resolution.
What happened: Twitter's refuted the argument that deep analysis into fake accounts was needed for the trial, mostly because it wasn't even a factor in the acquisition agreement.
- It also argued that prolonging the case would make it hard for the company to make important decisions for its operations in a timely manner.
The other side: Musk's legal team argued that the only critical date in this case would be his April deadline for the financing of the acquisition, making the fast-tracked trial unnecessary.
- It also argued that it needs more time to properly dig through discovery and all the data it seeks from Twitter about its spam accounts, and that the seven-month timeline it sought was much shorter than the three-to-four years such a case would normally take given the price tag and complexity.
The bottom line: The court's admitted bias toward expediting matters, coupled with its confidence that everyone involved can work swiftly, landed in Twitter's favor.
Go deeper: The merger term that could decide Twitter vs. Musk
Editor's note: This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
