Tesla, Musk Dodge $258 Billion Lawsuit

Elon Musk and Tesla Win Lawsuit Alleging Market Manipulation and Insider Trading

Elon Musk and Tesla have prevailed in a lawsuit accusing them of manipulating the price of Dogecoin (DOGE) and engaging in insider trading.

On August 29, 2024, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in Manhattan dismissed claims that Musk violated securities laws through social media posts about DOGE. The judge ruled that Musk's tweets were aspirational rather than factual representations.

The lawsuit, filed in June 2023, alleged that Musk inflated DOGE's price by over 36,000% through tweets and other social media posts. The plaintiffs claimed that Musk then sold his DOGE holdings at the peak, causing significant investor losses.

However, Judge Hellerstein found that Musk's tweets were not intended to be relied upon as statements of fact. Instead, he ruled that they were "puffery" or "aspirational statements" not subject to securities laws.

The ruling represents a significant victory for Musk and Tesla, as the lawsuit had the potential to hold them liable for billions of dollars in damages.