Electric vehicle-maker Tesla and opponents of CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package clashed on Friday as they look to resolve the legal dispute over the package and billions of dollars in potential legal fees that hinge on its outcome. The automaker said in a court filing that the Delaware judge who voided Musk's compensation package in a January ruling should recognize that shareholders voted to reinstate the package this month and reverse her prior ruling.
Further, they argued that before Tesla can file its appeal, the Delaware judge who issued the ruling, Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick, has to determine the legal fee that Tesla must pay them for winning the case. Tornetta's attorneys had previously asked for 29 million shares of Tesla stock, an amount worth over $5 billion, as the legal fee. They said Friday that Tesla could pay them at least $1.
Tornetta's legal team rejected that approach, arguing that the board process for proposing the ratification vote was flawed and that the shareholder vote was coerced by Musk's threats to potentially shift his focus on artificial intelligence investment away from Tesla without more control.