SAN FRANCISCO — A jury has found Elon Musk liable for misleading investors during his 2022 bid to acquire Twitter, but stopped short of concluding that he intentionally schemed to commit fraud.
The verdict followed a class-action trial centered on whether Musk’s public statements — including tweets saying the deal was “temporarily on hold” — influenced shareholders to sell their stock. Jurors determined that some of those statements were misleading, but ruled that Musk did not deliberately orchestrate a broader plan to defraud investors.
The nine-person jury reached its decision after three days of deliberation, concluding a trial that began on March 2. They found Musk liable for specific tweets but not for remarks made during a podcast appearance.
Because the case is a class action, potential damages remain unclear but could reach billions of dollars. Jurors indicated shareholders may be entitled to compensation ranging from about $3 to $8 per share per day.
The case stems from the turbulent period leading up to Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, which he later rebranded as X. Much of the dispute focused on Musk’s claims that the platform had significantly more fake or spam accounts than the roughly 5% disclosed in regulatory filings.
Musk initially cited those concerns as grounds to back out of the deal, prompting Twitter to sue in Delaware to enforce the agreement. He later reversed course and completed the acquisition under the original terms.d [it’s about] just loving the game and appreciating the game.”
