Twitter gains 4% as Delaware judge orders October trial in setback to Musk (updated)
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Updated: Twitter stock (NYSE:TWTR) briefly jumped higher again by as much as +4.5%, after a Delaware judge ruled that the legal battle with would-be buyer Elon Musk can go forward in October - respecting Twitter's request to expedite.
That served as a setback for Musk and his legal team, which argued that the case shouldn't be expedited, and perhaps delayed as long as a February 2023 ending.
The Delaware Court of Chancery has been "highly amenable" to expedition requests in cases where a party is calling for specific performance of a deal, as Twitter is, the judge says.
Meanwhile, the longer such deals are in limbo, the larger the risk of irreparable harm to the selling company, she said.
She wants a five-day trial in October, splitting the difference on trial length between the wishes of each team.
Original item: TWTR stock (TWTR) has jumped higher to a new level Tuesday at midday, +2.7%, as the judge in the Delaware Court of Chancery has begun pressing attorneys for Elon Musk on their argument against an expedited timetable in a legal battle over the on-then-off deal for Musk to buy the company for $44B.
The action today is just to set the trial dates, not to decide the issue.
After roughly an hour of opening statements from both sides - with Twitter arguing for moving forward, saying the drama is hurting the company every day, and Musk's attorneys raising comparisons to earlier, slower cases - the judge interrupted Musk's side appearing to suggest that similar cases went quite quickly.
Musk's attorneys have cited a February 2023 "drop-dead" date as a suitable endpoint for the legal action, while Twitter's side is arguing that the "bot issue" isn't at question before the court right now - the case's timetable is - and that Musk's foot-dragging is hurting the company minute by minute each day.
A decision on this issue is expected by 12:30 p.m. ET.
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I’ve looked for that provision in the public docs. Maybe it was part of the CA signed pre deal? In any case, it’s clear that he has non public information as both sides indicate, so buying/selling securities while in possession of that would be a huge red flag. But then again he’s ignored red flags before (like filing the correct form 13 on the correct day) so who knows?
Enjoy the Show.
True the deal has the financing written into it but the specific performance remedy falls away if the debt financing falls away. “it is hereby acknowledged and agreed that the Company shall be entitled to specific performance or other equitable remedy to enforce Parent and Acquisition Sub’s obligations …so long as, …(ii) the Debt Financing (or, as applicable, the Alternative Financing) has been funded or will be funded at the Closing if the Equity Financing is funded at the Closing…”(To be clear the comment you are responding to is more wrong than right about a bunch of stuff, but if the banking system blows up and the banks can’t fund, that is a fairly cut and dry way the buyer can avoid having to close)
