The official legal battle between Elon Musk and Twitter has begun.

After the world’s richest man made the decision to call his $44 billion Twitter acquisition off on Friday (July 8), the social media platform is prepared to take Musk to court, based on a report from CNN. The attempt is an effort to force him to follow through on his original deal to purchase the company.

As previously reported by AfroTech, Musk put a halt to the Twitter deal, demanding that the company provide him with insight on the number of spam accounts operating on the platform.

Breaking the Contract

Musk’s attorney alleges that the social networking site is “in material breach of multiple provisions.” Furthermore, he believes that the company withheld vital data by ignoring his call to evaluate the number of bot and spam accounts.

On the other hand, Twitter’s legal team called Musk’s termination of the deal “invalid and wrongful.” They also claim that he has violated the agreement due to his failure to follow through with the deal.

“In April 2022, Elon Musk entered into a binding merger agreement with Twitter, promising to use his best efforts to get the deal done,” said the complaint. “Now, less than three months later, Musk refuses to honor his obligations to Twitter and its stockholders because the deal he signed no longer serves his personal interests.”

Musk Speaks Out

After news broke that a suit had been filed, in true Musk fashion, the Tesla CEO took to Twitter.

“Oh the irony lol,” he wrote in a tweet.

Now that the deal is off of the table, the legal battle ahead might pan out to be a messy one. The decision on whether or not Musk will have to follow through with his plans lies within the hands of the court. If that fails, CNN reports that Twitter aims to “get him to pay the $1 billion set out as a breakup fee in the original agreement.”