A Delaware judge has agreed to stay the coming trial between Elon Musk and Twitter so the two sides can work out a deal for Musk to acquire the social media company.
In a two-page ruling issued Thursday evening, Delaware Chancery Court Judge Kathaleen McCormick said she would give the two parties until Oct. 28 to come to an agreement over the disputed transaction. The trial had originally been set to start Oct. 17.
Should the two sides fail to finalize a deal, the trial would start in November, she said.
The motion represents a victory for Musk, who in recent days had signaled he was seeking to avoid the trial by re-offering $54.20 a share for the company, or about $44 billion. Twitter opposed the offer as it sought to force Musk to close the deal on the exact terms he agreed to in April.
A Twitter representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Musk could not immediately be reached for comment.
Musk re-made his offer for the company Monday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, this time contingent on the completion of $13 billion in debt financing and the adjournment of the trial. Twitter responded by simply stating that it was its intention to close the transaction at $54.20 per share.
Twitter sued Musk in July to enforce the original transaction. Musk countersued, accusing the company of misleading him and investors — allegations Twitter has denied.
