Judge warns Elon Musk that even “big fish” need to follow court orders

Enlarge / Elon Musk arrives at federal court in New York on Thursday, April 4, 2019. (credit: Natan Dvir/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Elon Musk appeared in a Manhattan courtroom on Thursday to listen as his lawyers defended him against claims that he had violated a September deal with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC told Judge Alison Nathan that Musk violated the deal by publishing a February tweet stating that Tesla would produce “around 500k” vehicles in 2019—without getting the tweet pre-approved by a Tesla attorney.

Musk’s lawyers disagreed, arguing that his September deal gave him discretion to decide which tweets needed legal review. The settlement requires Musk to seek legal review for tweets that “contain or may reasonably contain” information that’s “material”—i.e., significant for people trading Tesla’s stock. But Musk’s lawyers argue that the 500k figure is consistent with Tesla’s past guidance (the SEC disputes this) and therefore wasn’t new information that needed fresh legal approval.

People who came to the courthouse hoping to see Musk smacked down—or vindicated—by Judge Nathan left disappointed. Rather than ruling directly on the SEC’s contempt motion, she ordered the parties to go back to the bargaining table and draw up a new, more-specific agreement governing Musk’s use of social media.