Cryptocurrency investors who previously accused Elon Musk and his company Tesla of Dogecoin cryptocurrency fraud and insider trading have withdrawn their appeal of a court decision dismissing the lawsuit.
Image source: x.com/elonmusk
The plaintiffs also withdrew their request to hold Musk’s lawyers liable for alleged interference in the appeal process – for which the investors demanded compensation for their legal costs. The businessman himself and Tesla also withdrew their request to hire a lawyer for the plaintiffs for handling the case, which is allegedly of a “frivolous” nature – the plaintiffs’ side, according to the defendants, constantly turned to different legal theories in order to “extort a quick handout.” Both sides filed documents dismissing the appeal and motions last Thursday evening, November 14, in federal court in Manhattan – they must be approved by District Judge Alvin Hellerstein.
Initially, investors accused Musk of misusing his Twitter (now X) and television appearances, and other unscrupulous practices to trade the Dogecoin cryptocurrency to his advantage and to their detriment – trades they said were pegged to Musk’s public statements and actions. Following the hearing, Judge Hellerstein ruled on August 29 that the plaintiffs had failed to prove securities fraud based on Musk’s tweets, including those claiming that Dogecoin was Earth’s future currency and that SpaceX could send it to the moon. The judge also noted that he did not understand the investors’ related claims of market manipulation and insider trading.
Last Tuesday, November 12, US President-elect Donald Trump appointed Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the new Department of Government Effectiveness, whose acronym (DOGE) echoes Dogecoin.