Parag Agrawal is not done with Twitter yet.

The former chief executive of the company now known as X was joined by Ned Segal, former chief financial officer; Vijaya Gadde, former head of legal and policy; and Sean Edgett, former general counsel, in filing a $128 million lawsuit against Elon Musk who took over the social media giant in October 2022 for $44 billion.

Their suit claims that Musk fired them under false pretenses and has withheld severance payments.

The suit also points to comments made by Musk to biographer Walter Isaacson in which he said "that he would deny the executives’ severance payments, saving himself about $200 million. He told Mr. Isaacson he would 'hunt' the executives 'till the day they die,'" notes the New York Times.

The strategy was cited by the plaintiffs' lawyers, who said in court documents that "this is the Musk playbook: to keep the money he owes other people, and force them to sue him. Even in defeat, Musk can impose delay, hassle and expense on others less able to afford it.” They added, “These statements were not the mere rantings of a self-centered billionaire surrounded by enablers unwilling to confront him with the legal consequences of his own choices. Musk bragged to Isaacson specifically how he planned to cheat Twitter’s executives out of their severance benefits in order to save himself $200 million.”

The Delaware Case

While Agrawal and co filed their suit in California's Northern District, Musk is facing a similar suit in Delaware. As Reuters reports, a class action lawsuit led by former engineer Chris Woodfield is seeking $500 million in withheld severance pay. Late last month, settlement talks fell apart. Reuters adds, "the company has denied wrongdoing and has moved to send the proposed class action case to individual arbitration, a tactic it has employed in several other lawsuits stemming from the mass layoffs."

THE VERDICT:

Sure, these cases will likely find resolution, but they may take years to fully resolve. While former Twitter execs are chasing down their severance pay, Musk is also fighting to keep X alive and turn its fortunes around. No doubt it’s a messy situation for all involved.