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Sep 7, 2022 - Economy

Judge rules that Elon Musk can use Twitter whistleblower claims

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Photo illustration of Elon Musk and the Twitter logo on square abstract blocks.

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post via Getty Images

A Delaware court on Wednesday ruled that Elon Musk will be allowed to introduce claims from Twitter whistleblower Peiter "Mudge" Zatko into his countersuit against the social media company. It also denied Musk's request to delay the October trial.

Why it matters: The whistleblower's claims, which include that Twitter violated a 2011 consent decree with the U.S. government, introduce a new legal wrinkle into Musk's attempt to back out of his $44 billion takeover offer for the social media company.

  • On the one hand, Zatko undermines Musk's existing arguments that Twitter has lied about the number of bot accounts on its platform.
  • On the other hand, Zatko also argues that Twitter violated its 2011 consent decree with the U.S. government, which Musk could try to argue is a material breach.

Read the ruling:

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