Twitter v. Musk, Biden tries to protect abortion, Teva under attack: 3 legal stories to watch
The biggest legal story in business news this week stems from a Friday news dump last week: Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk's attempt to pull out of his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter (TWTR).
Here's more on Musk's Twitter drama and two other legal stories we're watching — President Biden's efforts to protect abortion access after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and a legal filing from the New York state attorney general accusing Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA) of lying about its role in the opioid epidemic.
Musk terminates his Twitter bid
All eyes this week are on Musk and Twitter's board of directors after the Tesla CEO officially walked back his offer to buy the social media company. Musk's termination letter confirmed recent suspicions that he’d try to get out of the deal as Twitter's stock plummets along with much of the market.
Twitter said Friday that it plans to file suit in Delaware Chancery Court to enforce the $44 billion deal. Legal experts say the billionaire may have no choice but to go through with the tie-up or else pay a $1 billion breakup fee or pay even heftier damages.
Musk's reasoning for reneging on the deal? He says Twitter failed to turn over sufficient details about fake accounts on the platform. To win his case, he'll need to persuade the corporate-savvy Delaware Chancery Court that he was entitled under his contract with Twitter to get his hands on the information, before closing the deal.
The court may also have to decide whether Twitter's alleged failure to turn over the data resulted in Musk receiving misleading data that would have an "adverse material effect" on the company — the standard necessary for Musk to get out of deal without paying the $1 billion fee.
President Biden tests executive levers to protect abortion access
As pro-choice proponents challenge state abortion bans stemming from the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v Wade, Biden is exploring alternate paths to secure access for those who want to end pregnancies.
On Sunday, Biden told reporters that he asked his advisers to look into his legal authority to declare the Roe fallout a public health emergency. That inquiry follows an executive order issued by Biden on Friday intended to safeguard access to reproductive health care.
Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration is being asked to relax regulations on access to birth control medication. A manufacturer of the drugs, HRA Pharma, submitted an application to the agency asking for it to approve its birth control pill over the counter, as opposed to requiring a prescription.
NY AG alleges Teva lied about opioid involvement
New York's attorney general, Letitia James, is making new allegations against Teva Pharmaceuticals, saying the Israel-based generic drugmaker lied about its role in the opioid epidemic to avoid accountability for Americans who struggled with addition to the drugs. In reality, James said, Teva Pharmaceuticals was the chief decision-maker for the U.S. subsidiary, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., currently named in opioid litigation.
"Teva swore in court that it had no role in the U.S. opioids business," James tweeted Monday. "Yet, we have found it was the primary decision maker for @TevaUSA, and the company used a complex web of shell corporations to transfer significant funds out of @TevaUSA and into offshore accounts."
New York state is asking a court to reinstate parent company Teva Pharmaceuticals as a defendant in litigation against drug companies seeking to hold them accountable for opioid addiction in the U.S.
Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on Twitter @alexiskweed.
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