SEC Threatens Elon Musk With Sanctions Over Missed Testimony
The SEC announces plans to sanction Elon Musk after he skips a court-ordered appearance for the Twitter takeover probe, choosing instead to oversee a SpaceX launch.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announces plans to seek sanctions against Elon Musk after he skips a court-ordered testimony in Los Angeles. Musk notifies the agency just three hours before the September 10 hearing that he will not appear, prompting the SEC to accuse the billionaire of gamesmanship and delay tactics. Instead of attending the deposition, Musk oversees the launch of the Polaris Dawn spacecraft for his company SpaceX.
The SEC's legal counsel offers to reschedule the hearing for the following day, but Musk's attorney declines and agrees only to dates in October. In response, the agency seeks meaningful conditional relief and plans to file a sanctions motion to recoup thousands of dollars in travel costs for the three attorneys who fly to Los Angeles for the canceled session. The SEC demands that the court make clear Musk's delay tactics must stop.
This required court appearance stems from an ongoing SEC probe into Musk's 2022 acquisition of Twitter. The investigation examines whether Musk follows the law when disclosing his stock purchases and whether his statements about the $44 billion deal mislead investors. This marks the latest clash between Musk and the SEC, following a 2018 settlement where Musk steps down as Tesla chairman and pays a $40 million penalty over market-manipulating tweets.