Twitter is being sued by unpaid experts hired for the legal battle against Elon Musk, but the latter does not want to pay them
Twitter is the subject of a lawsuit from a consulting firm, Charles River Associates (CRA), which says it owes two million dollars for the work it did to create a force by hiring Elon Musk. Elon Musk announced his intention to buy Twitter in April 2022, before trying to back out of the operation three months later. So Twitter began legal proceedings, before Musk changed his mind again and bought Twitter for $44 billion in October. Now, the consultancy says it wasn’t paid for the work it did in the lawsuit that forced Elon Musk to complete his purchase of the company.
Last Thursday, Charles River Associates filed a lawsuit against Twitter in a Massachusetts state court. Court documents revealed that as part of the Musk litigation, Twitter’s legal team asked the CRA to provide expert consulting services to Twitter. The companies reached an agreement in August 2022, and the CRA began preliminary work on the documents, according to court documents. Twitter’s lawsuit against Musk was put on hold after he was acquired, but the CRA is now seeking to recover money it says it still owes.
Charles River Associates said Twitter accepted it shortly after Twitter sued Musk over his refusal to complete their $44 billion merger deal. Musk finally made the purchase in late October after it became clear he would likely lose in court. From August 15 to October 27, 2022, the CRA provided all employment and expert consulting services requested by Twitter and its legal counsel in connection with the Musk litigation and in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contract, according to the complaint filed last week in Suffolk County Superior Court Boston, Massachusetts. The suit alleges that Twitter breached the contract by not paying all of the CRA’s fees, which totaled $2.19 million.
The CRA is seeking the full amount of the invoices and double or treble damages for Twitter’s willful and fraudulent breach of the Consulting Agreement, plus interest, costs and legal fees. Twitter also failed to follow the agreed procedure to object to the bills, the CRA said. Twitter agrees, pursuant to the terms of the Agreement, that any objection to CRA invoices must be made by Customer in writing within five (5) business days of receipt of the invoice to which the objection is made. Twitter never served the CRA’s objections about the CRA’s fees, the lawsuit says.
The complaint alleges that the CRA and its lead consultant, Professor Mark Zmijewski, were engaged by Twitter to provide economic advisory services related to the expert opposition report and expert opposition testimony planned. by Professor Zmijewski, who had to refute the expert’s report and the testimony of the other. of Musk parties experts, Yvette Austin Smith. The CRA’s work includes research and analysis underlying expert opinions to be included in the expert opposition report, preparation of draft reports, and other expert advice and litigation support under the direction of legal counsel of Twitter, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint describes the CRA’s attempts to get paid for its work after Musk reluctantly completed his purchase of Twitter rather than continue to fight the lawsuit. The CRA said it received no response to a series of messages it sent about unpaid bills in the month after Musk’s purchase. The CRA lawsuit is one of several allegations that Musk-owned Twitter has refused to pay fees for services it provided before it bought the company.
Lawsuits against the social network have increased since Elon Musk’s takeover
Since taking over Twitter, the billionaire has cut costs. He laid off half the staff and cut rent at the company’s San Francisco headquarters and other offices around the world. Twitter has been sued for failing to pay $136,250 in rent for its San Francisco offices. The landlord, Columbia Reit – 650 California LLC, said it notified Twitter on Dec. 16 that it would default on its lease for the 30th floor of the Hartford Building within five days unless rent was paid. The tenant failed to comply, Columbia Reit said in the lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in San Francisco state court. Twitter hasn’t paid the rent for its headquarters or any of its other global offices for weeks. The moves come as Musk faces the first payment on the $12.5 billion in debt he took on to acquire Twitter.
A complaint alleges that Twitter has failed to pay a $1,092,000 bill on a software deal that doesn’t expire until the end of 2024, and that the Elon Musk-led company apparently intends not to pay. to the supplier additional payments of $7 million. Imply Data, Inc. sued Twitter in California Superior Court, San Francisco County, alleging breach of contract.
Imply Data Inc. said. that after paying bills of about $4.4 million under a proprietary software services contract that runs through 2024, Twitter missed its quarterly bill in Nov. 30. and waived any obligation to pay future bills, according to the lawsuit filed in San Francisco state court. Imply estimate its damages at more than $8 million. Imply, founded in 2015 and based in Burlingame, Calif., said its lawsuit marks a clear example of Twitter refusing to pay its debt to other companies without just cause.
In the complaint, Imply said that before Musk’s arrival, Twitter had given the software company more than $10 million over four years and had always been satisfied with Imply’s product and its maintenance and support services. A decision was made in mid-2021 to extend their contract for a further three years.
Twitter was also accused in December of not paying private jet bills for flights taken by former executives before Musk completed the hiring. The complaint also comes as Musk faces a stock fraud trial over his August 2018 tweet in which he said he had obtained funds to take Tesla private. A shareholder group said its announcement rattled markets and cost investors millions of dollars.
Source: Complaint
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