The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sued Elon Musk to compel him to testify in the regulator’s investigation concerning his purchase of social media site Twitter.
The lawsuit comes after Musk failed to appear and give scheduled testimony in September. The SEC is now asking a judge to force Musk to appear in court.
In addition to Twitter, which has been rebranded as X, Elon Musk also owns electric-vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA) and privately held concern SpaceX.
The SEC is seeking Musk’s testimony in connection with an investigation of potential securities-law violations related to his $44 billion U.S. acquisition of Twitter in October 2022.
Specifically, the SEC investigation is looking at Musk’s statements and SEC filings related to Twitter, according to court documents.
The SEC said it sent a subpoena to Musk in May of this year requiring his appearance for testimony. The two sides agreed to meet in September, but Musk ended up being a no-show.
The SEC said in its legal action that Musk’s reasons for not appearing are “spurious.”
Responding to a post about the SEC’s court filing on X, Musk said a comprehensive overhaul of the regulator is “sorely needed.”
X, formerly known as Twitter, is a private company and its stock doesn’t trade on a public exchange.
