Elon Musk wants Tesla fraud trial moved from San Francisco to Texas to avoid ... trends now
Elon Musk's lawyers want to move his upcoming fraud trial with Tesla investors from San Francisco to Austin, Texas to avoid potential bias from jurors.
Lawyers for the Chief Twit say because he recently laid off 50 percent of Twitter workers in the Northern California city, there is a sense of 'local negativity' amongst residents in the area.
The billionaire's lawyers want the trial moved to Texas where Tesla is currently headquartered after moving from Palo Alto in late 2021.
The trial stems from tweets Musk sent in August 2018 claiming he had 'funding secured' regarding Tesla going private and that the messages were 'indisputably false' and cost them billions.
Elon Musk's lawyers want to move his upcoming fraud trial with Tesla investors from San Francisco to Austin, Texas to avoid potential bias from jurors
Lawyers for the Chief Twit say because he recently laid off 50 percent of Twitter workers in the Northern California city, there is a sense of 'local negativity' amongst residents in the area
The CEO maintains he did not mislead investors and that he had funds from Saudi Arabia that supported his statements.
Musk, 51, is the CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX, purchased Twitter in October 2022 for $44 billion and installed himself as CEO immediately.
In court filings, Musk's lawyers say the man is a consistent target of Bay Area news sources and that this means he will be unable to obtain a fair trial in California.
'Mr. Musk is far likelier to receive a fair trial in the Western District of Texas,' the billionaire's lawyer, Alex Spiro of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan partner, wrote.
'Mr. Musk has not been the subject of overwhelming, pervasive, and inflammatory press coverage by the local media in the Western District of Texas, like he has in this district. Texas news outlets publish far fewer stories about Mr. Musk.'
The filing come less than two weeks before the legal proceedings are slated to begin in Northern California on January 17.
Musk, 51, purchased Twitter in October 2022 for $44 billion and installed himself as CEO immediately
Tesla is headquarted in
The trial stems from tweets Musk sent in August 2018 regarding taking the company private
Musk tweeted that he was taking his electric-vehicle company private at $420 per share and could do so with 'funding secured'
In August 2018, Musk tweeted that he was taking his electric-vehicle company private at $420 per share and could do so with 'funding secured.'
In the weeks following, Tesla's stock trading halted and then shares were considered volatile due to his tweets.
Northern California Senior District Judge
