Musk Can’t Escape Investor Suit Over Flip-Flop on Twitter Buyout

Elon Musk must face a Twitter investor lawsuit that accuses him of fueling uncertainty about his proposed buyout in an effort to drive down the social media platform’s stock price, a California federal judge ruled.

US District Judge Charles Breyer on Monday kept alive claims involving three of Musk’s statements last year about the deal being put on hold and the number of fake accounts on the platform. Musk “did give an impression materially different from the state of affairs that existed,” according to the ruling.

The San Francisco judge also tossed some claims that were based on other statements by Musk, saying the investors hadn’t shown those statements were false or misleading.

Filed in October 2022, the case alleged that Musk harmed Twitter investors by manipulating the stock price through statements designed to throw doubt on whether the deal would close.

Musk was ultimately unsuccessful in his attempts to back out of the $44 billion buyout. He has since renamed the company X Corp.

Lawyers at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP representing Musk didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The case is Pampena v. Musk, 22-cv-05937, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).

Photo: Elon Musk Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg