Elon Musk has settled a $128 million lawsuit filed by four former top executives of Twitter, now rebranded as X. The case focused on severance payments the executives said Musk refused to pay after his 2022 takeover.
Executives say they were dismissed without justification
The group, including former CEO Parag Agrawal, argued Musk fired them unfairly and blocked severance promised under their contracts. In a court filing, their lawyers stated, “The parties have reached a settlement, and the settlement requires certain conditions to be met in the near term.” The financial terms of the settlement remain confidential. The lawsuit, filed last year, is one of several legal challenges tied to unpaid severance after Musk’s acquisition.
Legal teams remain silent
Attorneys for Musk, X, and the former executives have not commented on the settlement. The plaintiffs—Agrawal, former chief financial officer Ned Segal, former chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde, and former general counsel Sean Edgett—said they were owed one year’s salary and stock awards under an established severance plan. They accused Musk of deliberately avoiding payments owed to former employees.
Mass layoffs led to previous settlements
In August, Musk and X settled a separate lawsuit involving roughly 6,000 former employees who claimed they were collectively owed $500 million in severance. Musk purchased Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion after initially trying to back out of the deal. Once the acquisition closed, he swiftly removed top executives and cut over half of the workforce.
Executives allege Musk acted out of anger
The former leaders said Musk was angry about being forced to finalize the $44 billion acquisition. They claimed he falsely accused them of misconduct to justify firing them and avoid paying their severance. The settlement ends one of Musk’s most high-profile legal battles and highlights the lasting effects of his management changes at X.
