Elon Musk continues to find himself in legal trouble, as four former Twitter executives, including ex-CEO Parag Agrawal, filed a lawsuit against him for over $128 million in unpaid severance payments.
Upon purchasing Twitter, now known as X, Musk swiftly removed Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, and lawyers Sean Edgett and Vijaya Gadde from their positions. The lawsuit asserts that Musk harbors a “special ire” towards these former executives, who were instrumental in holding him to his $44 billion commitment when he attempted to back out. As stated in the lawsuit, Musk is quoted from Walter Isaacson’s biography of him, declaring that he will “hunt every single one” of Twitter’s C-suite “till the day they die.”
Musk has been particularly critical of Gadde, who was involved in making numerous controversial content moderation decisions on Twitter. Following his bid to purchase the company, Musk posted mocking memes about Gadde, which sparked a barrage of racist online attacks against her.
It’s not just these executives who have yet to receive their severance pay. Musk has faced multiple lawsuits from former Twitter employees who are also waiting for compensation. Since Musk took ownership, the company has even stopped paying rent on some of its offices, leading to additional legal action and evictions.
The lawsuit alleges that Musk falsely accused these executives of “gross negligence” and “willful misconduct” upon their termination, but failed to provide any evidence to support his claims.
This is the Musk playbook: to keep the money he owes other people, and force them to sue him,” the lawsuit states. “Even in defeat, Musk can impose delay, hassle, and expense on others less able to afford it.”
