Elon Musk has agreed to settle a $128 million lawsuit with four of Twitter’s former top executives, now part of his rebranded company X. The dispute centered on claims that Musk refused to pay severance owed after his 2022 takeover of the social media platform.
Former executives accuse Musk of wrongful dismissal
The group, which included former CEO Parag Agrawal, said Musk fired them without cause and denied them the compensation promised in their contracts. In a court filing, their lawyers said, “The parties have reached a settlement, and the settlement requires certain conditions to be met in the near term.” The filing did not reveal financial terms. The lawsuit, filed last year, was among several challenges over unpaid severance following Musk’s sweeping job cuts.
Legal representatives stay silent
Lawyers for both Musk and the former executives declined to comment on the deal. The four plaintiffs—Agrawal, former chief financial officer Ned Segal, former chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde, and former general counsel Sean Edgett—said they were entitled to one year’s salary and stock awards under an established severance plan. They accused Musk of repeatedly avoiding payments owed to employees after the takeover.
Mass layoffs led to another major settlement
In August, Musk and X also settled a separate case with around 6,000 former employees who said they were collectively owed $500 million in severance pay. Musk bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion after initially trying to back out of the deal. Once the purchase was completed, he quickly removed the company’s top leaders and cut over half of its global staff.
Musk’s frustration sparked further disputes
The executives said Musk’s anger over being forced to finalize the $44 billion acquisition led to their dismissal. They accused him of falsely alleging misconduct to justify firing them and withholding their severance. The settlement closes another chapter in Musk’s turbulent management of X, a platform that has seen dramatic transformation since his arrival.
