A federal judge has rejected Elon Musk’s appeal to transfer the case of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) legal inquiry into the timing of his Twitter stake announcement to Texas.  Elon Musk has faced legal scrutiny from regulators in both the U.S. and the UK over the management of his companies. In the latest […]A federal judge has rejected Elon Musk’s appeal to transfer the case of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) legal inquiry into the timing of his Twitter stake announcement to Texas.  Elon Musk has faced legal scrutiny from regulators in both the U.S. and the UK over the management of his companies. In the latest […]

Musk’s push to transfer SEC probe of Twitter deal to Texas rejected by Federal judge

2025/10/03 09:13
4 min read

A federal judge has rejected Elon Musk’s appeal to transfer the case of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) legal inquiry into the timing of his Twitter stake announcement to Texas. 

Elon Musk has faced legal scrutiny from regulators in both the U.S. and the UK over the management of his companies. In the latest development, a U.S. judge has rejected his request to move an SEC lawsuit from Washington, D.C., to Texas.

SEC’s case against Musk

A federal judge has rejected Elon Musk’s attempt to transfer a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit to Texas, keeping the high-stakes case in Washington, D.C.

U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan ruled Thursday that Musk failed to show sufficient grounds to move the case away from Washington. He also insisted that the billionaire maintains a broad presence across states and abroad, even though Musk spends much of his time in Texas, where Tesla and SpaceX have their headquarters.

“The Court takes Mr. Musk’s convenience seriously, but it also notes that Mr. Musk has considerable means and spends at least forty percent of his time outside his chosen forum,” Sooknanan wrote. “Indeed, although Mr. Musk may have ‘rarely’ traveled to this District in recent months, Mr. Musk’s brief itself indicates that he has spent substantial time here this year.”

The SEC lawsuit started in January 2025, more than two years after Musk acquired Twitter, now rebranded as X, for $44B. The regulator is looking to prove that the SpaceX founder violated disclosure rules when he quietly stacked more than 5% of Twitter’s stock in early 2022 before going public with his stake and subsequent takeover.

Federal securities law requires investors to file a special disclosure within ten days of surpassing a 5% threshold in a publicly traded company. According to the SEC, Musk delayed filing the paperwork, which allowed him to buy additional shares at lower prices and deprived other investors of material information.

The SEC claims that the timing of Musk’s stake disclosure in April 2022, after he had become Twitter’s largest shareholder, cost other shareholders over $150M.

“Musk’s conduct undermined the transparency and fairness of the securities markets,” the SEC argued in its filings. “The violation is clear, and the consequences for shareholders were significant.”

Musk’s legal team, however, has dismissed the suit as baseless and politically motivated. In August, they filed a motion to dismiss, calling the case “a waste of this court’s time and taxpayer resources.” The attorneys are insisting that Musk’s actions caused no meaningful harm and that the SEC is pursuing a personal vendetta against him.

SEC refuses to concede home-field advantage

In addition to challenging the lawsuit’s validity, Musk asked for the case to be relocated to Texas, where he has moved much of his business empire. His lawyers argued that forcing him to fight the SEC in Washington, the agency’s home turf, would be unfair.

“Forcing Mr. Musk to litigate in this district would merely perpetuate and compound the harm from the SEC’s years-long campaign against him,” Musk’s attorneys wrote in their motion.

The judge was not persuaded. Sooknanan emphasized that Musk’s wealth and global travel schedule demolish his claims of inconvenience. She also noted that Washington, D.C., is the logical venue since the SEC is headquartered there and much of the agency’s work on the case has been conducted in the capital.

The ruling keeps the case in the same district where Musk has previously sparred with regulators and also ensures that the proceedings remain close to the SEC’s leadership and legal staff, who have clashed with Musk multiple times over the past decade.

Keeping the case in Washington may provide a procedural advantage for the SEC and expedite a resolution.

Don’t just read crypto news. Understand it. Subscribe to our newsletter. It's free.

Market Opportunity
EPNS Logo
EPNS Price(PUSH)
$0.011618
$0.011618$0.011618
-13.14%
USD
EPNS (PUSH) Live Price Chart
Disclaimer: The articles reposted on this site are sourced from public platforms and are provided for informational purposes only. They do not necessarily reflect the views of MEXC. All rights remain with the original authors. If you believe any content infringes on third-party rights, please contact service@support.mexc.com for removal. MEXC makes no guarantees regarding the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of the content and is not responsible for any actions taken based on the information provided. The content does not constitute financial, legal, or other professional advice, nor should it be considered a recommendation or endorsement by MEXC.
Tags:

You May Also Like

⁉️ Epstein, a convicted pedo, invested in Coinbase

⁉️ Epstein, a convicted pedo, invested in Coinbase

The post ⁉️ Epstein, a convicted pedo, invested in Coinbase appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The latest Epstein Files release has placed a variety of powerful
Share
BitcoinEthereumNews2026/02/07 04:07
How The ByteDance App Survived Trump And A US Ban

How The ByteDance App Survived Trump And A US Ban

The post How The ByteDance App Survived Trump And A US Ban appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 13: Participants hold signs in support of TikTok outside the U.S. Capitol Building on March 13, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Getty Images From President Trump’s first ban attempt to a near-blackout earlier this year, TikTok’s five-year roller coaster ride looks like it’s finally slowing down now that Trump has unveiled a deal framework to keep the ByteDance app alive in the U.S. A look back at the saga around TikTok starting in 2020, however, shows just how close the app came to being shut out of the US – how it narrowly averted a ban and forced sale that found rare bipartisan backing in Washington. Recapping TikTok’s dramatic five-year battle When I interviewed Brendan Carr back in 2022, for example, the future FCC chairman was already certain at that point that TikTok’s days were numbered. For a litany of perceived sins — everything from the too-cozy relationship of the app’s parent company with China’s ruling regime to the app’s repeated floating of user privacy — Carr was already convinced, at least during his conversation with me, that: “The tide is going out on TikTok.” It was, in fact, one of the few issues that Washington lawmakers seemed to agree on. Even then-President Biden was on board, having resurrected Trump’s aborted TikTok ban from his first term and signed it into law. “It feels different now than it did two years ago at the end of the Trump administration, when concerns were first raised,” Carr told me then, in August of 2022. “I think, like a lot of things in the Trump era, people sort of picked sides on the issue based on the fact that it was Trump.” One thing led to another, though, and it looked like Carr was probably…
Share
BitcoinEthereumNews2025/09/18 07:29
Solana Crashes Below $100: Could $73 Be the Next Key Support?

Solana Crashes Below $100: Could $73 Be the Next Key Support?

Solana (SOL) slipped to $85.73 on Friday, February 6, 2026, marking a 26.49% decline over the past week, according to CoinMarketCap data. Trading volume surged
Share
Tronweekly2026/02/07 04:30