Musk’s ‘Twitter sitter’ saga drags on with Supreme Court rejecting his plea to ditch Tesla lawyer
Elon Musk’s agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to have a lawyer screen and approve Musk’s social media posts about Tesla will remain after the Supreme Court rejected Musk’s appeal.
The justices refused to hear contentions from Tesla’s CEO that the 2018 accord he signed violated his constitutional rights.
The accord was prompted after Musk tweeted in August 2018 that he had secured funding to take Tesla private, thus raising the value of shares. The SEC argued the post misled shareholders, prompting the commission to take legal action against Musk. He settled with the SEC, resigning as Tesla chairman and paying $20 million.
However, four years later, Musk used his Twitter, now X, account to suggest he was conducting business at his followers’ whims. He posted a Twitter poll asking whether he should sell 10% of his stock in Tesla. In response, the SEC sent subpoenas to Musk and Tesla. Musk went back to the court in the hopes of voiding the prescreening agreement, but a federal appeals court rejected his contentions last year.
Musk’s lawyers argued the agreement violated Musk’s free speech rights, stating that “the pre-approval provision at issue continues to cast an unconstitutional chill over Mr. Musk’s speech whenever he considers making public communications.”
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In a brief filed by U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, the SEC called on the court to reject Musk’s request for a hearing.
“This court has consistently held that, in resolving litigation, parties may choose to waive even fundamental constitutional rights,” the brief said.
