Elon Musk has reached a settlement in a $128 million lawsuit filed by four former senior executives of Twitter, now rebranded as X. The case focused on severance payments the executives said Musk refused to provide after his 2022 takeover.
Former executives say they were dismissed unfairly
The group, including ex-CEO Parag Agrawal, argued that Musk fired them without cause and denied the 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 were not disclosed. The lawsuit, filed last year, is one of several legal challenges linked to unpaid severance after Musk’s acquisition.
Legal teams decline comment
Lawyers for Musk, X, and the former executives have not responded to requests for comment. 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 a long-standing severance plan. They accused Musk of deliberately avoiding payments owed to former employees.
Mass layoffs triggered previous settlements
In August, Musk and X settled another lawsuit involving around 6,000 former employees who claimed they were collectively owed $500 million in severance. Musk bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion after initially attempting to withdraw from the deal. After the acquisition closed, he quickly removed top executives and cut over half of the workforce.
Executives allege Musk acted out of frustration
The former leaders claimed Musk was angry about being forced to complete the $44 billion purchase. They said 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 disputes and highlights the ongoing consequences of his management changes at X.
