Former Twitter executive Nick Caldwell is suing Elon Musk and Mr. There is.
In a lawsuit filed Wednesday in California federal court, Caldwell’s lawyers say that after Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, the company “falsely deducted severance payments totaling $200 million.” He defrauded Mr. Caldwell and other executives.” He accuses them of wrongdoing and claims he will fire them for ‘just cause.’ ”
Caldwell’s lawsuit is similar to one brought by former Twitter executives, including former CEO Parag Agrawal, who claim they are owed $128 million in unpaid severance pay.
Caldwell is currently Chief Product Officer. peloton He also serves on the boards of several other technology ventures, according to his LinkedIn profile. He previously worked at Twitter as General Manager of Red Bird, a core technology organization where he managed a team of hundreds of engineers.
According to the complaint, Mr. Caldwell worked to ensure that Twitter retained key personnel until the acquisition was completed, and then sent a letter to Twitter on October 28, 2022 stating that he was resigning for “just cause.” He said he sent it. Two days ago, Mr. Musk tweeted He posted a video of him entering HQ and wrote, “Entering Twitter HQ – Get used to it!”
Twitter accepted Caldwell’s resignation, which triggered “Twitter’s Change of Control and Involuntary Termination Protection Policy” for executives who leave in good standing, Caldwell’s lawyers argued.
Twitter told Caldwell that his last day of employment will be Nov. 27, one month after he submitted his resignation. According to the complaint, the company immediately blocked access to its internal systems and did not contact them. By Nov. 27, Twitter was claiming Caldwell had been fired for cause.
“With no factual basis, Mr. Musk simply accused Mr. Caldwell of wrongdoing as a ploy to avoid paying the millions of dollars in severance that Mr. Musk and Twitter must pay Mr. Caldwell. ” his lawyer wrote.
The complaint alleges that Mr. Musk is a member of other companies, SpaceX, teslaAmong them were those who worked “to deny severance claims filed by Mr. Caldwell and other executives as part of the retirement plan’s administration process.”
The lawsuit names SpaceX employees Brian Bigelde and Lindsey Chapman, as well as Dhruv Bhatula, who previously worked at SpaceX in finance. teslaalong with Musk as defendants.
Caldwell’s lawyers said in a filing that their client will receive approximately $19.3 million in severance and interest, and approximately $500,000 in severance and interest, representing the value of the restricted stock units that would have been paid in November 2022. He said he was owed about $3 million. , plus attorney fees.
Musk and Mr. X did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Caldwell’s attorney declined to comment and referred CNBC to the filing.
Days before his Twitter resignation, Caldwell posted on social media, “My wife and soulmate, Tia Caldwell, passed away unexpectedly on October 15th. She was only 39 years old, but with so much love… I have lived a beautiful and fulfilling life,” he shared in a post. . ” The complaint does not mention his wife’s death.
Read the full text of the complaint — Nicholas Caldwell v. Elon Musk, X Corp., et al. (Case 3:24-cv-02022) — below.