A federal appeals court on Thursday questioned Elon Musk’s bid to end an agreement that he made to get a Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) lawyer’s preapproval of some of his tweets, with judges pointing out that he agreed to it as part of a 2018 deal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Musk’s attorney Ellyde Thompson told the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan that while the Tesla chief executive thought the settlement would “buy peace” with the SEC, the agency’s recent attempts to enforce the tweet vetting provision have discouraged him from exercising his right to free speech.
The settlement resolved a lawsuit accusing Musk of defrauding investors with a Aug. 7, 2018 tweet that he had “funding secured” to take his electric car company private, though a buyout was not close.
Source: Elon Musk’s bid to end tweet pre-approval faces skeptical court | Reuters
