Elon Musk’s efforts to get his massive $56 billion 2018 Tesla pay package reinstated was rejected by a Delaware judge on Monday.
The decision, issued by Delaware Chancery Court Judge Kathaleen St. J. McCormick, comes after a majority of Tesla shareholders in August reauthorized the compensation package during the electric vehicle maker’s annual meeting.
After it was initially approved in 2018, the pay package sparked a lawsuit from some Tesla shareholders who accused Musk and Tesla’s board of directors of breaching their duties and unjustly enriching the billionaire. A Delaware judge ruled that Musk and his company failed to prove that the huge payout was legally warranted, prompting Musk to take the issue back to his shareholders in August.
In her Dec. 2 decision, McCormick said that Musk had asked the court “to flip its decision and enter judgment in their favor.”
She added, “The motion to revise is denied.”
The stock options Tesla granted to Musk were initially worth $2.6 billion but had soared to $56 billion when McCormick blocked the package in January, according to Bloomberg News.
—This is a breaking story and will be updated.