Elon Musk feels SEC probe in the US is limiting his free speech

Tesla's CEO Elon Musk has accused the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of harassing him with “endless” and “unrelenting” investigations, which he feels is limiting his free speech.    

Tesla CEO Elon Musk seems to have started a war with US regulators as he says the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is harassing him with “endless” and “unrelenting” investigation, which he feels is limiting his free speech.

Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Musk and Tesla, has sent a letter for the same to US district judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan, who chaired the 2018 SEC settlement, which originated from Elon Musk's tweet about a potential buyout of Tesla.

The company’s lawyer is saying that the US regulators are purposely targeting Musk and Tesla for unrelenting investigation as Musk has an outspoken nature and is a government critic. "The SEC seems to be targeting Mr Musk and Tesla for unrelenting investigation largely because Mr Musk remains an outspoken critic of the government; the SEC's outsized efforts seem calculated to chill his exercise of First Amendment rights."

The letter comes just weeks after Tesla revealed that SEC issued a new order to the company in November 2021, which was about its compliance with the 2018 settlement. Those who are unaware, Musk had tweeted in 2018 that he could take Tesla private at $420 per share and that funding for the transaction had been secured. But, the reality was different as it was discovered that a buyout was not close. SEC alleged that Musk knew that the potential transaction was uncertain and subject to numerous contingencies.

Tesla and Musk were later charged $20 million each in civil fines, which they agreed to pay. Tesla was also asked to establish a new committee of independent directors and put “in place additional controls and procedures to oversee Musk’s communications.” Musk also had to give up the company’s chairmanship.

In the latest letter, Spiro has accused the SEC of ignoring its commitment to distribute fines to shareholders, as it is instead "devoting its formidable resources to endless, unfounded investigations" into Musk and Tesla. Spiro has further asked Nathan to set a conference and ask the SEC as to why it is "issuing subpoenas unilaterally" without taking court approval, and why the money isn't distributed yet.