Elon Musk Responds to Twitter’s Lawsuit Over $44 Billion Deal

Elon Musk accused Twitter on Friday of deceiving him about its service, obfuscating facts and not notifying him of executive changes, in his first formal response to the company’s lawsuit aimed at forcing him to complete a $44 billion acquisition of the social media service.

Lawyers for Mr. Musk, who struck the blockbuster deal to buy Twitter in April but has since tried to terminate the purchase, made the arguments in a legal filing intended to oppose the company’s demand for a four-day trial in September in the case.

Twitter is rushing to court after “a two-month treasure hunt of delays, technical bottlenecks, evasive answers and, ultimately, refusals,” Mr. Musk’s lawyers said in the filing. They added that Twitter was trying to “shroud the truth” over fake accounts on the service, an issue that Mr. Musk has made central to his desire to pull out of the deal.

Twitter had requested a September trial because Mr. Musk was due to complete his deal to buy the company by Oct. 24. Mr. Musk’s lawyers proposed a February date for a trial instead, noting that the deal deadline automatically extends in the event of litigation. The banks that have committed to help fund the deal have promised that financing through April 25, 2023.

Mr. Musk’s legal filing was a forceful rebuke of Twitter’s accusations that he was trying to unjustly end the acquisition. In its lawsuit this week, Twitter said Mr. Musk had “knowingly, intentionally, willfully and materially breached” his agreement to buy the company by falsely claiming that he was not getting information about the prevalence of fake accounts on the service.

The ensuing legal battle promises to be ugly and prolonged. The back-and-forth between the two sides had already escalated for weeks before landing in court. Mr. Musk has made barbed comments about the company and frequently questioned the prevalence of fake accounts on the platform. Fake accounts are used to spread spam or manipulate Twitter’s service by falsely boosting trends, and are often automated rather than run by real people.

At one point, Mr. Musk tweeted that the deal with Twitter was on hold. His actions coincided with a slide in the value of tech shares, including those of Tesla, the electric carmaker that Mr. Musk leads and that is the main source of his wealth.

Twitter has maintained that it has worked with Mr. Musk to close the deal and is intent on seeing the sale through. In the deal agreement, Twitter and Mr. Musk have a so-called specific performance clause that allows the company to sue to force the deal through, as long as the debt that the billionaire has corralled for the acquisition is in place.

A Twitter spokesman declined to comment.

Ann Lipton, a professor of corporate governance at Tulane Law School, said it was clear why Twitter was moving with speed and Mr. Musk wasn’t.

“The Twitter board has every interest in getting this settled quickly, and he has every interest…