Twitter fails to pay PR company bills after Musk buyout – lawsuit
© Reuters. PHOTO: A photo of Elon Musk is visible through the Twitter logo in this illustration taken October 28, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) – Former public relations firm Twitter sued the social network on Friday, saying it failed to pay its bills following a $44 billion buyout of Elon Musk.
Joel Frank said Twitter owed $830,498, including six unpaid bills, as well as subpoena costs in Twitter’s lawsuit, to force Musk to complete the ransom after he tried to back out.
The public relations firm said Twitter terminated its contract on Nov. 16, three weeks after the buyout closed, and no longer communicates its payment requirements other than an automatic promise to “start processing immediately.”
Twitter, also known as X Corp, no longer has a media relations department. In response to a request to comment on the lawsuit with a poop emoji. Musk’s lawyer, who copied the request, did not immediately respond to it.
Joel Frank started working at Twitter in January 2015, according to a complaint in a New York state court in Manhattan.
Numerous landlords, salespeople and consultants have sued Twitter over unpaid bills that Musk inherited when he bought the company before he cut costs significantly.
In Delaware, Twitter was also sued by three former executives, including Parag Agrawal, whom Musk fired as CEO, alleging the company had breached more than $1 million in legal fees.
Musk said Twitter could generate positive cash flow as early as this quarter despite declining ad revenue.
According to published reports, the second richest person in the world, who also runs electric vehicle company Tesla (NASDAQ:) Inc, has estimated that Twitter has lost more than half its value since it was bought.
JF Associates LLC v. X Corp, New York State Supreme Court, District of New York.
