A judge says Elon Musk must forfeit a compensation package awarded by Tesla’s board of directors potentially worth more than $55 billion.
The ruling in a Delaware court comes five years after a shareholder lawsuit targeted Tesla CEO Musk and directors. They were accused of breaching their duties to the electric vehicle and solar panel maker, resulting in waste of company assets and unjust enrichment for Musk.
The plaintiff’s lawyers argued that the compensation package was dictated by Musk and was the product of sham negotiations with directors who were not independent of him.
Defense lawyers said the compensation plan was negotiated fairly by a committee of independent directors, contained high performance goals and was blessed with a shareholder vote that wasn’t even required.