Twitter has set a date for its shareholders to vote to approve its $44 billion acquisition deal by Elon Musk, despite the company’s ongoing legal battle with the billionaire Tesla CEO over the deal.
The company on Tuesday sent shareholders a letter saying it would hold a virtual special meeting on September 13 to vote on the merger agreement, according to a regulatory filing.
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The announcement comes as the legal fight between Twitter and Musk over the deal revs up. Musk earlier this month moved to terminate his agreement to buy Twitter, accusing the company of breaching the deal by making misleading statements about the number of bot accounts on its platform and withholding information that he claims could help him evaluate the issue. Days later, Twitter filed a lawsuit against the billionaire, asking a court to compel him to follow through with the deal. A judge last week ruled that the case should go to a five-day trial in October.
The Musk suit aside, the shareholder vote is one of the few remaining official steps needed to compete the deal. Twitter’s board has unanimously recommended that shareholders vote in favor of the deal. And if shareholders approve the acquisition, it could give Twitter some additional leverage in its legal fight against Musk.
In the acquisition agreement, Musk agreed to pay $54.20 for each outstanding share of Twitter, marking a 38% premium over the stock price the day before Musk revealed in April that he had become one of Twitter’s largest shareholders.
Twitter’s board has said it is “committed to closing the merger on the price and terms agreed upon with Mr. Musk.”
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