Tesla CEO Elon Musk has filed an appeal with Florida’s 4th District Court to prevent a deposition in a wrongful death lawsuit related to a high-speed Tesla Model S crash. The appeal argues that Musk should be protected from “harassing and burdensome” deposition efforts by the plaintiffs’ lawyers, reports Reuters.
Although Musk is not directly involved in the lawsuit or the appeal, his statements to the family of the deceased 18-year-old Tesla driver are central to the case. The family of a passenger who also died in the crash won a court order in July, permitting them to question Musk for up to 60 minutes about specific comments he allegedly made concerning Tesla’s technology.
The appeal offers Florida courts a fresh opportunity to examine the extent to which top corporate executives can avoid being deposed. Tesla is also facing other lawsuits over crashes involving its vehicles.
According to court records, the driver was speeding at 116 mph in a 25 mph zone when he lost control of the vehicle, resulting in a crash into two concrete walls. Two lawsuits were filed following the 2018 accident: one by the driver’s family against Tesla in federal court and another by the passenger’s estate in state court against Tesla, the driver’s family, and others.
The driver’s parents claim that a Tesla technician disabled a speed “limiter” on the sedan without their knowledge, which had previously restricted the car from exceeding 85 mph. Tesla has denied these allegations, attributing the crash to the driver’s “reckless” operation of the vehicle.
Tesla’s legal team stated that Musk does not recall making any comments beyond offering condolences to the driver’s family. However, the driver’s father recalled Musk saying, “perhaps we should not have removed the limiter” and that Tesla would “have to review and revise” its policies.
Circuit Judge Mark Speiser commented in a July hearing that it’s rare for a corporation’s CEO to personally contact the parent of a victim in such a tragic accident. He added that he would be “remiss by not allowing Mr. Musk’s deposition to be taken.”
In a related federal case last year, a Florida jury found Tesla to be 1% negligent, while the deceased teen and his father were found to be 99% at fault. Their appeal is currently pending in the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
