Musk, X to face trial in Don Lemon lawsuit alleging breach of contract
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Musk and X have faced other lawsuits over non-payment to vendors and over failure to provide severance as promised to laid-off employees from Twitter.
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July 10, 2025
08:23 PM
CNBC
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Broadcast journalist Don Lemon's lawsuit against Elon Musk and social network X can ceed to trial, a judge ordered this week
Lemon sued Musk and X after the billionaire abruptly canceled a partnership with the former CNN anchor
Musk and X have faced a litany of other lawsuits over non-payment to vendors and over failure to vide severance as mised to laid-off employees from Twitter
Elon Musk (L) & Don LemonReuters (L) | Getty Images (R)Ex-CNN anchor Don Lemon's lawsuit against billionaire Elon Musk and his social network X over the cancellation of their partnership can ceed to trial, a San Francisco judge ruled this week
Musk's team had tried to get the case moved to a Texas court and tried to convince the judge to strike the complaint altogether
Attorneys for Musk and X didn't respond to a request for
In an order Tuesday, Judge Harold Kahn said Lemon and his attorneys plausibly alleged, among other claims, that X and Musk had committed "fraud by false mise" and that there was "an implied contract" between them
Lemon filed the suit in August 2024 after X canceled a partnership with the broadcast journalist a few hours after he taped a tense interview with Musk, who owns X
The interview preceded a planned premiere of Lemon's new show on Musk's social network
During the interview, Lemon pressed Musk on several contentious topics he had posted or amplified on X
Musk had boosted the so-called "great replacement theory," and other bigoted tropes and falsehoods, including posts that claimed there was a "Hispanic invasion" of immigrants to the U
Read more CNBC newsPerplexity launches AI-powered web browser for select group of rsRetailers log $7. 9 billion in online sales in first 24 hours of Prime DayLinda Yaccarino steps down as CEO of Elon Musk's XElon Musk's Grok AI chatbot denies that it praised Hitler and made antisemitic sLemon also pressed Musk content moderation on X, and a reported surge in antisemitic content on the platform that occurred after Musk acquired it as Twitter in a $44 billion leveraged buyout in late 2022
Musk made sweeping changes after taking over the site, firing huge numbers of personnel and reversing account bans for users who had been booted from the platform after posting hate speech or inciting violence
Musk, who characterized himself as a free speech "absolutist" also restored the account of President Donald Trump
The site had permanently banned Trump from the platform in January 2021 ing the attack by his supporters on the U
Lemon's case against Musk and X Corp
Is in San Francisco Superior Court
A date has not been set for the trial
Musk and X have faced a litany of other lawsuits over non-payment to vendors and over failure to vide severance as mised to laid-off employees from Twitter
Lemon was fired from CNN in 2023 ing reports that he mistreated coworkers and made sexist remarks on-air, including politician Nikki Haley
Lemon later apologized for the Haley s.
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