Elon Musk requested the court to move the upcoming Tesla shareholder trial to Texas, as he believed that he can not get a fair trial in San Francisco, California. The request was submitted less than two weeks before the trial begins on January 17th.
WILMINGTON, DE - JULY 12: Tesla Founder Elon Musk leaves a courthouse after testifying in a court case on July 12, 2021 in Wilmington, Delaware. Musk testified in court over Tesla's $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity, a rooftop solar panel installer. by Michael A. McCoy/Getty Images
(Photo : Michael A. McCoy/Getty Images) WILMINGTON, DE - JULY 12: Tesla Founder Elon Musk leaves a courthouse after testifying in a court case on July 12, 2021 in Wilmington, Delaware. Musk testified in court over Tesla's $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity, a rooftop solar panel installer.
Requesting to Move the Trial
Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk is set to face a shareholder trial on January 17th. But Engadget reported that he requested for a federal judge to move this trial out of San Francisco due to a substantial portion of the potential jury pool.
Musk believes that if this case will proceed in the original location, it would most likely hold a bias against him. Especially since the recent media coverage criticized the CEO for his actions when he acquired the social media platform Twitter and conducted mass (and continuous) layoffs at the company.
If ever the request for moving the trial is denied, the lawyers of the CEO want this trial to be postponed until negative publicity dies down. Approximately 1,000 residents in the San Francisco area have been laid off by Musk since he purchased the social media platform in October.
Attorney Alex Spiro stated, "A substantial portion of the jury pool is likely to hold a personal and material bias against Mr. Musk as a result of recent layoffs at one of his companies as individual prospective jurors - or their friends and relatives - may have been personally impacted."
Aside from the laid-off employees, San Francisco Mayor London Breed also criticized Musk's actions regarding the job cuts. Last month, Axios reported that state officials investigated reports that Twitter has set up sleeping quarters for employees in its Mid-Market office.
This made the CEO slam Breed on prioritizing attacking his company over making sure the kid's safety from fentanyl, as he linked a report regarding this issue.
So city of SF attacks companies providing beds for tired employees instead of making sure kids are safe from fentanyl. Where are your priorities @LondonBreed!?https://t.co/M7QJWP7u0N
Musk and his lawyers requested in the filing last Friday to move the trial to Austin, Texas instead, where the Tesla headquarters have been since late 2021. This was submitted less than two weeks before the trial is set to begin on January 17th.
However, Associated Press News reported that the attorneys of the shareholders emphasized the last-minute timing of the request and the unfounded concerns and meritless motion of the billionaire CEO.
Attorney Nicholas Porritt stated that the Northern District of California has been a proper venue for this lawsuit ever since the trial started four years ago.
The class action lawsuit contains statements from Musk in 2018 that were claimed as "false and misleading." He promised to consider taking Tesla private at $420 per share, which landed in trouble with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
The shareholders involved in this trial won last spring when Federal Judge Edward Chen ruled that "Musk had recklessly made the statements with knowledge as to their falsity."
For the upcoming trial, it would determine the after-effects of his tweets regarding the stock price of the automaker and whether he should be held accountable for potential damages.
