Overview

• U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan denied Musk’s bid to move the SEC suit to Texas or, alternatively, to Manhattan, keeping the case in the District of Columbia.
• The judge noted Musk’s considerable resources, his spending at least 40% of his time outside Texas, and his documented time in Washington this year running the Department of Government Efficiency.
• Applying 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), the court found Musk’s convenience arguments insufficient and pointed to heavier judicial caseloads in Texas, saying the case can advance with reasonable alacrity in D.C.
• The SEC alleges Musk delayed by 11 days before disclosing he crossed the 5% ownership threshold in early 2022, allowing purchases at lower prices and seeking a civil penalty plus $150 million in disgorgement.
• Musk maintains he is an incredibly busy executive working 80-plus hour weeks and is also moving to dismiss the complaint in the case docketed as SEC v. Musk, No. 25-00105.