A Delaware judge has invalidated Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $56 billion pay package, ruling that the company’s board failed to demonstrate the fairness of the compensation plan or provide sufficient evidence of negotiations, CNBC reports.
The judge found that Musk had significant control over Tesla and criticized the flawed process leading to the board’s approval. The decision, a result of a lawsuit filed by shareholder Richard Tornetta, may require Musk to return the compensation received. The 2018 pay package, the largest in public corporate history, made Musk the world’s richest person.
Musk made a post on his social media platform on X (formerly Twitter) in response to the ruling, stating “Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware” and suggested a poll on whether Tesla should change its state of incorporation to Texas.
