Elon Musk will testify in court again as part of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s investigation into his $44-billion takeover of Twitter.
Laurel Beeler, federal judge in San Francisco, told lawyers representing the Tesla CEO that Musk will have to endure another day in court. Musk’s legal team argued the SEC does not have the authority to issue subpoenas, a claim that was quickly rejected by Beeler.
Lawyers for the regulator argued the SEC has new documents relating to the takeover and that Musk must answer further questions.
Beeler said that the SEC has “broad investigative powers” and that no judge would “second guess” an investigation by the agency.
She told both legal teams that Musk and the SEC must agree to a date for a further day of testimony — and if not, Beeler said she’d set a date for them.
“You’ve got one more four-hour deposition, one more day of depositions to survive and it’s over,” she said. She added: “If you don’t work it out, then it’s in San Francisco in February.”
Musk And SEC: A Checkered History
Musk and the SEC have had previous run-ins, the most high profile of which was related to his 2018 tweet saying he had “funding secured” to take Tesla private. The resulting share price volatility led to claims of misleading investors and prompted a civil suit by the SEC.
In settlement, Musk shelled out $20 million in fines and was stripped of his chairmanship over the electric vehicle maker. He was also told that any future tweets relating to Tesla must be screened by a company lawyer before being posted.
Last week, Musk appealed to the Supreme Court to have this so-called “Twitter sitter” clause removed from the 2018 settlement with the SEC.
Also Read: Supreme Court Vs. SEC: A Potential Game-Changer For Investors And Regulators’ In-House Courts
Documental Procedure
The markets regulator is still investigating whether Musk followed the correct legal procedures in filing the required documents regarding his purchases of Twitter stock, and whether his statements on the deal were misleading.
On April 4, 2022, Musk filed paperwork to the SEC announcing he’d acquired a 9.2% stake in Twitter 11 days after the regulator’s deadline for such disclosures. In this filing, Musk stated that he would be a passive stakeholder,…
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