Paramount seeks nearly $1.9 billion bond over WBD merger delay

(KYMA, CNN) - Paramount Skydance is requesting a $1.88 billion bond from 12 states suing them over the their proposed merger with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD).

According to a court document filed Monday, the bond is to help Paramount cover their losses in response to the merger's delay.

"Both the Clayton Act, the federal antitrust law upon which these suits are based, and other federal law expressly provide that plaintiffs are required to post a bond covering the potential harm from halting a transaction to litigate, so that if they lose, the injured party has a source of recovery for the damage caused," the company said in a statement. "Here, every month of delay carries substantial and quantifiable financial consequences."

In response to the latest court filing, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who is leading the lawsuit, posted to social media saying, "Paramount and Warner Bros. are two sophisticated companies who willfully decided to include a costly ticking fee as a provision in their merger contract. What's more, Paramount itself agreed to the timing it is now protesting. It's Blackmail: The Sequel, and we remain unmoved."

It remains to be seen if Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin, who is overseeing the case, will agree as she already waived the bond requirement earlier in the case, writing the states had demonstrated they were bringing the suit to "enforce important public interests."

Last month, 12 state attorneys general, including Arizona and California, and the Writers Guild of America sued to block the merger between Paramount and WBD.

As a result of the lawsuits, Paramount announced they were delaying the merger, with Judge Martinez-Olguin has set a trial date for March of next year.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and other countries approved the merger.