Elon Musk Asks Court to End 2018 Settlement With SEC, Says Report
His lawyers argue that oversight of his social media activity from securities regulators has become "unworkable, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk reportedly asked a federal judge Tuesday to end a settlement he and Tesla reached with the US Securities and Exchange Commission over alleged securities fraud in 2018, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In a motion filed in a Manhattan federal court, Musk's lawyers reportedly argued that the oversight policy over his social media posts has become unworkable and that the SEC has continued to make "round after round of demands for voluminous, costly document productions, with no signs of abatement," according to the Journal.
The motion is reportedly the latest attempt by Musk and Tesla to abate the SEC's oversight over his social media posts. In February, Musk and Tesla accused the agency of carrying out a "harassment campaign" against the CEO and his electric car company over the 2018 regulatory settlement. In a letter sent to the federal judge who presided over that settlement, Musk's attorney argued that the SEC was trying to jeopardize Musk's freedom of speech. The letter came after Tesla disclosed earlier in February that the SEC issued a new subpoena to the company in November seeking information on Tesla's compliance with the settlement.
Tesla and the SEC have been locked in a legal battle that stems from a social media post by Musk in 2018, when he told his 22 million followers on Twitter at the time that he was poised to take the car company private. The SEC sued Musk for "false and misleading" statements to investors. A settlement was reached in September 2018, which included Musk and Tesla each paying $20 million and SEC oversight of some of Musk's posts on social media.
We reached out to Musk's attorney for a comment and will update the story when we hear back. The SEC declined to comment.