Elon Musk has been ordered by a federal court to answer additional questions regarding his takeover of Twitter, now rebranded as X, during a planned interview on Thursday. The financial community is left wondering whether Musk will attend, especially after his absence from a previous court-ordered appearance at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) office in Los Angeles last month.
The upcoming questioning is part of a high-level investigation into whether Musk delayed disclosing his growing stake in Twitter prior to acquiring the platform in 2022. Musk has previously acknowledged that this delay was a mistake. The SEC is now seeking to enforce his appearance by considering potential sanctions.
During the 10 September court hearing, the SEC reported spending thousands of dollars to send three lawyers—two from San Francisco and one from Washington, D.C.—to conduct a sworn deposition with Musk. However, just three hours before the appointment, Musk’s legal team informed the SEC that he would be unable to attend. They claimed that Musk had traveled urgently to the East Coast for a “high-risk” launch by his rocket company, SpaceX.
Despite this assertion, SpaceX had posted about the launch timing two days before Musk’s scheduled deposition. Additionally, a day prior, Musk mentioned at a conference that he intended to travel to Florida for the launch, contingent on favorable weather. The SEC argued that Musk did not communicate these plans, leaving government lawyers unaware of his whereabouts until after the fact.
Following the last-minute cancellation, the SEC requested a federal court to ensure Musk’s presence at the next scheduled meeting. Musk has already participated in two depositions since the SEC began investigating his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter in 2022. The agency is examining whether his stock purchases prior to the acquisition, along with his statements about these investments, violated securities laws.
Despite earlier cooperation, Musk declined to provide testimony a third time, with his lawyers accusing the SEC of harassment. In response, the SEC requested a court order compelling him to comply, claiming Musk’s reasoning for missing the previous appointment “smacks of gamesmanship.”
In a filing, SEC lawyer Robin Andrews urged U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Corley to impose strict measures against Musk, emphasizing that “gamesmanship and delay tactics must cease.” Musk’s attorney, Alex Spiro, countered that Musk and his companies have cooperated with the investigation, producing hundreds of documents and testifying multiple times without cancellations.
As the court date approaches, the focus remains on whether Musk will ultimately comply with the order to appear and answer questions about his controversial acquisition of Twitter.
