WILMINGTON, Delaware (AP) — Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been granted a reprieve from being questioned by Twitter’s lawyers, according to several press reports. The billionaire was set to testify in his bitter legal battle with Twitter over whether he should honor his agreement to buy the social platform for $44 billion.
Instead, Musk’s questioning was postponed. Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, who was also scheduled to meet with Musk’s lawyers on Monday, also delayed his ouster, according to a person briefed on the matter.
Musk’s delay was reported by Bloomberg, Reuters and the Wall Street Journal, all citing anonymous sources.
News of the delays sparked a brief spike in Twitter shares, which jumped 5.4% to $43.03, apparently on hopes of a settlement. That enthusiasm waned later in the day. Shares of Twitter closed Monday at $41.58, eight cents higher than the stock market.
Court watchers say such adjournments are not unusual ahead of major preliminary hearings. Hearings on several significant pretrial motions are scheduled for Tuesday.
Both men are expected to answer questions from opposing lawyers ahead of an October trial that will determine who is to blame for the apparent collapse of Musk’s Twitter bid, not to mention who owes whom large sums of money as a result. The trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 17 in Delaware’s Chancery Court, where it is expected to last just five days.
Musk, the world’s richest man, agreed in April to buy Twitter and take it private, offering $54.20 a share and promising to loosen the company’s control over content and root out fake accounts. In July, he tried to back out of the deal, making a series of accusations on Twitter to justify his actions.
Twitter subsequently sued Musk to force him to complete the acquisition.
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