1 00:00:03,200 --> 00:00:07,960 Speaker 1: This is Bloomberg Law with June Brusso from Bloomberg Radio. 2 00:00:09,640 --> 00:00:12,240 Speaker 2: Jennifer Cumbley didn't pull the sugar a day, but she 3 00:00:12,480 --> 00:00:16,360 Speaker 2: is responsible for those deaths. Jennifer Crumbley is on trial 4 00:00:16,440 --> 00:00:19,600 Speaker 2: for the murders of four students in a shooting rampage 5 00:00:19,640 --> 00:00:22,520 Speaker 2: at a Michigan high school in November of twenty twenty one. 6 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:26,120 Speaker 2: It was her fifteen year old son who pulled the trigger, 7 00:00:26,400 --> 00:00:29,920 Speaker 2: but prosecutors are trying to hold her responsible for what 8 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:34,479 Speaker 2: they say as wilful negligence of her son's deteriorating mental 9 00:00:34,520 --> 00:00:38,559 Speaker 2: health and warning signs that he was contemplating violence. Here 10 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:40,080 Speaker 2: is prosecutor Mark Quist. 11 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:41,839 Speaker 1: This case is about. 12 00:00:42,120 --> 00:00:45,760 Speaker 2: It's about Jennifer Crumbley's willful disregard of the danger that 13 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:49,400 Speaker 2: she knew of. But her defense attorney, Shannon Smith, says 14 00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:52,640 Speaker 2: Crumbly had no reason to believe her son Ethan was 15 00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 2: a threat. The evidence the trial is going to show 16 00:00:55,960 --> 00:01:00,880 Speaker 2: you that Jennifer Crumley did the best she good as 17 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:05,640 Speaker 2: a mother to a child who grew up into a 18 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:11,080 Speaker 2: teenager and had no way to know what was going 19 00:01:11,160 --> 00:01:15,280 Speaker 2: to happen. Ethan Crumbley was sentenced to life in prison 20 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:18,720 Speaker 2: in December after he pleaded guilty to murder, terrorism and 21 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:22,320 Speaker 2: other crimes. Joining me is criminal defense attorney Richard Kaplan 22 00:01:22,440 --> 00:01:25,640 Speaker 2: of Caplin Marino. Parents have been charged for the criminal 23 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:29,119 Speaker 2: acts of their children before. What makes this case novel? 24 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: Well, I just think it's the premise that you're charging 25 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:35,720 Speaker 1: someone for a failure to ask. I mean, it's just 26 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:39,560 Speaker 1: kind of rare in a criminal case that in action 27 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 1: is the basis of the crime. We just don't see 28 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 1: that very much. So, you know, what we have is, 29 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:50,000 Speaker 1: you know, basically a circumstantial evidence case saying, hey, in hindsight, 30 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:52,560 Speaker 1: we're looking back and say you should have known. And 31 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: I think it's kind of a slippery slope when you 32 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:58,200 Speaker 1: start doing that, because you're holding people to a standard 33 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:01,680 Speaker 1: and that really is hindsight. And so that that's kind 34 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:04,360 Speaker 1: of in my mind where it gets dangerous. Now we 35 00:02:04,400 --> 00:02:06,080 Speaker 1: can look at all the factors here, and there are 36 00:02:06,160 --> 00:02:08,840 Speaker 1: quite a few, you know, I find so much of 37 00:02:08,880 --> 00:02:11,080 Speaker 1: what's going on in this case cuts both ways. 38 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:13,880 Speaker 2: How do you mean it cuts both ways? Because the 39 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:18,200 Speaker 2: prosecution has introduced a lot of evidence so far the 40 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 2: trial's not over yet, that the mother failed to heed 41 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:27,040 Speaker 2: or do anything about these troubling warning signs that her 42 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,480 Speaker 2: son had mental health issues. 43 00:02:30,360 --> 00:02:33,120 Speaker 1: Well, I was given that some thought, and you know, 44 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:37,720 Speaker 1: there's such an issue in society today with mental health 45 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:40,240 Speaker 1: and you know how vigilant we have to be, but 46 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:43,799 Speaker 1: there's a strong segment of the society that just doesn't 47 00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:47,639 Speaker 1: understand mental health awareness. You know, they don't believe that 48 00:02:47,840 --> 00:02:52,480 Speaker 1: going to get therapy is something that they normally do. 49 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:56,400 Speaker 1: And so you're now holding these people to a standard 50 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,080 Speaker 1: that you know, in certain more rural areas, you know, 51 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:01,320 Speaker 1: people just don't address it that way. And I think 52 00:03:01,360 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 1: at one point for the father had said, you know, 53 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:05,639 Speaker 1: the son, you just got it tough en up. And 54 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:09,200 Speaker 1: that's a lot of people believe that. And so again 55 00:03:09,600 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 1: that in and of itself kind of cuts both ways. 56 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:15,440 Speaker 1: If she's ignorant on mental health, she's not really aware 57 00:03:15,919 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: of what can be done to help. You know, you're 58 00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:21,200 Speaker 1: criminalizing someone who's maybe just be ignorant. 59 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:25,800 Speaker 2: But the prosecution seems to be piling up evidence. I 60 00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:28,239 Speaker 2: mean it's almost heartbreaking in a way. Sort of the 61 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:32,919 Speaker 2: son's cries for help, including a text where he said 62 00:03:32,919 --> 00:03:37,480 Speaker 2: he was having hallucinations. Basically he was scared because demons 63 00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:41,480 Speaker 2: were throwing bowls. Can you text back? He asked his mother, 64 00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:43,600 Speaker 2: and his mother didn't. 65 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:48,120 Speaker 1: Text back again. She's going to testify, my understanding, and 66 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:50,200 Speaker 1: I don't know what her explanation is going to be, 67 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: you know, whether she was caught up at work at 68 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:57,560 Speaker 1: the moment, whether she didn't know what to appropriately text back. 69 00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 1: I mean, we've all got that text of some sort 70 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:03,240 Speaker 1: or another where you look at it and you think, 71 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 1: I got to think about this. You know, this is 72 00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:08,680 Speaker 1: kind of strange. Texting is different than having a conversation. 73 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:10,840 Speaker 1: You know, I think we can all acknowledge that, and 74 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:13,080 Speaker 1: it may have been kind of like she didn't know 75 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:14,800 Speaker 1: what to do. I think we're going to hear from her, 76 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 1: so that'll be very interesting. 77 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:20,080 Speaker 2: Yeah, her attorney said she's going to take the stand, 78 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:24,200 Speaker 2: and that's always risky here. There's a lot for the 79 00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 2: prosecution to cross her on, and plus she has to 80 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:30,720 Speaker 2: hold it together to a certain extent. And she was 81 00:04:31,279 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 2: sobbing audibly in the courtroom when the school surveillance video 82 00:04:35,480 --> 00:04:35,920 Speaker 2: was shown. 83 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:38,720 Speaker 1: It's always a risk when your client takes a stand, 84 00:04:38,839 --> 00:04:42,599 Speaker 1: and you know this kind of case, does a jury 85 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:48,480 Speaker 1: like her, does she come across as genuinely feeling terrible, 86 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:53,279 Speaker 1: feeling bad seeing all this in hindsight, these warning signs, 87 00:04:53,360 --> 00:04:56,039 Speaker 1: and in a sense feeling guilty in the sense that 88 00:04:56,120 --> 00:04:59,240 Speaker 1: she should have done more. But you know, again there's 89 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:02,479 Speaker 1: an ignorance to all this, and the jury believes that 90 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:05,800 Speaker 1: she's being honest. You know that she just didn't see 91 00:05:05,839 --> 00:05:08,640 Speaker 1: it the way you see it. Now in hindsight, they 92 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:11,440 Speaker 1: may acquit her. I think she really just needs to 93 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:13,800 Speaker 1: be real. I mean, if they think there's crocodile tears, 94 00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:17,719 Speaker 1: then she's done again. If the jury likes her, she 95 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:18,440 Speaker 1: got a chance. 96 00:05:19,400 --> 00:05:22,279 Speaker 2: The prosecution has built this case where they sort of 97 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:26,640 Speaker 2: present different avenues for the jury defined culpability of the 98 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,080 Speaker 2: mother and also the father when he's tried in March. 99 00:05:29,279 --> 00:05:31,839 Speaker 2: First there's what we were talking about, the parents ignoring 100 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:35,440 Speaker 2: signs of his mental distress. And then they also have 101 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:39,760 Speaker 2: evidence where their parents were directly confronted with facts that 102 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:43,640 Speaker 2: sort of forecast the shooting. For example, there was a 103 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:48,080 Speaker 2: school meeting and this is just hours before the shooting, 104 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:52,760 Speaker 2: and the parents were called in to discuss Ethan's disturbing drawings, 105 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:55,960 Speaker 2: which depicted a gun, the figure of a shooting victim, 106 00:05:56,279 --> 00:05:59,839 Speaker 2: and the words blood everywhere. And so they've had school 107 00:05:59,839 --> 00:06:03,599 Speaker 2: of officials testify about that and say, A, the parents 108 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:07,120 Speaker 2: didn't say anything, but B they didn't take him out 109 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 2: of school. 110 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:11,200 Speaker 1: Yes, and again we get that the school did not insist. 111 00:06:11,480 --> 00:06:13,560 Speaker 1: You kind of run into that again where I say 112 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:16,440 Speaker 1: things cut both ways. I mean, the prosecution is putting 113 00:06:16,440 --> 00:06:18,640 Speaker 1: on their case and look, these are good points, and 114 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:22,359 Speaker 1: I think they're building a strong circumstantial evidence case. But 115 00:06:22,400 --> 00:06:26,320 Speaker 1: at the same time, the school saw this and you know, 116 00:06:26,320 --> 00:06:28,520 Speaker 1: they gave them the option and instead of saying no, 117 00:06:28,920 --> 00:06:31,520 Speaker 1: he's out here until we figure out more. And so 118 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:34,000 Speaker 1: you know, I think to some degree you're going to 119 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:37,480 Speaker 1: see her lawyers kind of say, hey, the school didn't 120 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:40,960 Speaker 1: know better. The school sees them every day. There could 121 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:43,440 Speaker 1: have been some warning signs that went on at the 122 00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:47,159 Speaker 1: school too, and they failed to act in the same way. Again, 123 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:50,240 Speaker 1: it's that kind of hindsight. Is twenty twenty and you 124 00:06:50,279 --> 00:06:54,400 Speaker 1: know the defense is set. You can't hold somebody responsible 125 00:06:54,600 --> 00:06:58,640 Speaker 1: for the unforseeable. I mean, no one imagines the unimaginable 126 00:06:58,800 --> 00:07:00,920 Speaker 1: that this is going to happen. You know, like I said, 127 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:02,720 Speaker 1: everything cuts two ways. 128 00:07:02,440 --> 00:07:07,279 Speaker 2: In this The prosecutors are also presenting evidence of affirmative acts. 129 00:07:07,400 --> 00:07:11,200 Speaker 2: The parents took just four days before the shootings. The 130 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:16,120 Speaker 2: father bought Ethan this semi automatic handgun used in the shootings, 131 00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:20,160 Speaker 2: and his mother took him for target practice. That strikes 132 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:23,960 Speaker 2: me as the most incriminating evidence the prosecution has here. 133 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:26,800 Speaker 1: Again, it's not a good fast for the mom or 134 00:07:26,840 --> 00:07:29,320 Speaker 1: for the dad that they went and did this, especially 135 00:07:29,400 --> 00:07:32,240 Speaker 1: with the warning signs. But the other side of it 136 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:36,960 Speaker 1: is they purchased the gun legally. I think in that 137 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:41,400 Speaker 1: area of Michigan, it's not uncommon that, you know, teenagers 138 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,120 Speaker 1: learned to shoot with their families. They took him to 139 00:07:44,200 --> 00:07:47,400 Speaker 1: a shooting range, which is kind of a supervised area 140 00:07:47,520 --> 00:07:50,760 Speaker 1: to learn to shoot, so there was some responsibility. Now 141 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:53,520 Speaker 1: again that cuts both ways. You understanding the dangers of 142 00:07:53,520 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: a gun, you're doing it the right way, you know, 143 00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:57,640 Speaker 1: so it cuts a little bit of both ways. Apparently, 144 00:07:57,680 --> 00:07:59,960 Speaker 1: I think they also purchased the lock box the gun, 145 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:03,440 Speaker 1: So again that's the two way. You know, you're recognizing 146 00:08:03,480 --> 00:08:05,400 Speaker 1: the dangers of a weapon, and that's why you have 147 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:07,880 Speaker 1: a block box. But then of course key knows the 148 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:10,800 Speaker 1: code to the box, so it's tough. But I think 149 00:08:10,840 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: you know, it's four days before and with all the 150 00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:17,000 Speaker 1: warning signs. I think that's probably the strongest evidence against 151 00:08:17,000 --> 00:08:18,760 Speaker 1: her is, you know, taking him to the range. 152 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:23,520 Speaker 2: The parents fled after the shooting, and the prosecution is 153 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:28,200 Speaker 2: presenting that as consciousness of guilt. Will the defense says 154 00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 2: they were going to come back for the arraignment. How 155 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:34,520 Speaker 2: important is that because in a lot of cases, judges 156 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:38,320 Speaker 2: will even instruct the jury that they can consider flight 157 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:40,600 Speaker 2: as evidence of consciousness of guilt. 158 00:08:41,400 --> 00:08:44,520 Speaker 1: And that's certainly I think the instruction they may try 159 00:08:44,559 --> 00:08:47,040 Speaker 1: to get, or certainly the inference the prosecution wants to 160 00:08:47,080 --> 00:08:49,839 Speaker 1: make is playing is a consciousness of guilt. But then again, 161 00:08:49,880 --> 00:08:52,320 Speaker 1: you know, there's also a fear factor that they didn't 162 00:08:52,360 --> 00:08:54,200 Speaker 1: want to stay at their home where they thought, you know, 163 00:08:54,280 --> 00:08:56,320 Speaker 1: maybe one of these other parents are going to come 164 00:08:56,320 --> 00:08:58,240 Speaker 1: by and do something. I mean, we don't know what 165 00:08:58,280 --> 00:08:59,160 Speaker 1: she's going to say. 166 00:08:59,640 --> 00:09:02,920 Speaker 2: So now the defense is arguing several things You've mentioned 167 00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:06,000 Speaker 2: some of them, and she's also trying to pin the 168 00:09:06,040 --> 00:09:09,480 Speaker 2: blame on her husband. That's very convenient because he's not 169 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:13,120 Speaker 2: in the courtroom and can't answer back, and also on 170 00:09:13,160 --> 00:09:16,760 Speaker 2: the school which you refer to, for failing to notify 171 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:20,439 Speaker 2: her about her son's problematic behavior. How effective might that be. 172 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:24,400 Speaker 1: On this one. There's a lot of factors. There's mom, 173 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:27,160 Speaker 1: there's dad, there's the school, and any one of them 174 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:29,560 Speaker 1: could have and should have done something. I think we 175 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:32,600 Speaker 1: all agree in hindsight that's, of course. But you know 176 00:09:33,040 --> 00:09:35,920 Speaker 1: her side is, Look, husband didn't do anything. He's the 177 00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:38,520 Speaker 1: one who bought the gun. You know, school didn't do anything. 178 00:09:38,559 --> 00:09:41,120 Speaker 1: They see him every day, and there was problematic behavior, 179 00:09:41,400 --> 00:09:43,319 Speaker 1: and so now it's kind of like, hey, you're piling 180 00:09:43,360 --> 00:09:45,559 Speaker 1: on on me, and you know, I was just trying 181 00:09:45,559 --> 00:09:47,760 Speaker 1: to do the best I can at being the good mother. 182 00:09:48,040 --> 00:09:51,280 Speaker 1: And again when the unimaginable happens, you can't say, oh, 183 00:09:51,320 --> 00:09:53,080 Speaker 1: I should have known that was going to happen. 184 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:56,440 Speaker 2: Do you think this case could set a precedent or 185 00:09:56,520 --> 00:09:59,560 Speaker 2: is it just relegated to the facts of this case. 186 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:04,880 Speaker 1: These facts are fairly extreme. I think. You know, certainly 187 00:10:04,920 --> 00:10:08,439 Speaker 1: the prosecution's trying to send a message here, not only 188 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,760 Speaker 1: to their local area, but it's the national news that 189 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:15,440 Speaker 1: you know, parents can be held responsible. It gets to 190 00:10:15,520 --> 00:10:18,400 Speaker 1: the ages. You know, he was at sixteen seventeen, I 191 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:21,080 Speaker 1: mean it's it's a much younger child, for example, then 192 00:10:21,120 --> 00:10:23,800 Speaker 1: you have a higher duty to keep the weapon safe 193 00:10:24,080 --> 00:10:27,239 Speaker 1: versus you know, a teenager. And again, in that environment, 194 00:10:27,400 --> 00:10:30,480 Speaker 1: probably many teenagers shoot with their families. I mean, I 195 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:32,880 Speaker 1: think they would like to set a precedent that parents, 196 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:34,880 Speaker 1: you better wake up and you know, keep an eye 197 00:10:34,920 --> 00:10:37,120 Speaker 1: on your kids, because yes, if your kid does something 198 00:10:37,640 --> 00:10:39,599 Speaker 1: like this, you can be held responsible. 199 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:41,600 Speaker 2: Which side would you rather be on? Would you rather 200 00:10:41,640 --> 00:10:44,000 Speaker 2: be the prosecutor or the defense attorney in this case? 201 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:47,160 Speaker 1: I've been a defense attorney for thirty five years. That's 202 00:10:47,240 --> 00:10:49,400 Speaker 1: what I know. And again, this is one right. You know, 203 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:52,200 Speaker 1: in California, we have a jury instructure that says, in 204 00:10:52,240 --> 00:10:58,000 Speaker 1: a circumstantial evidence case, if there's two reasonable versions of 205 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:00,480 Speaker 1: the evidence, you must go with the one that points 206 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:04,240 Speaker 1: they're not guilty. Now Michigan doesn't have that particular instruction, 207 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:06,200 Speaker 1: but that's kind of you know. What you want to 208 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:09,920 Speaker 1: argue is, look, there's an innocent story here and then 209 00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:13,679 Speaker 1: there's a guilty story here. But if both have reasonableness 210 00:11:13,720 --> 00:11:15,760 Speaker 1: within them, then you have to go with not guilty. 211 00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:19,319 Speaker 2: We'll see how the defense presents its case. The prosecution 212 00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:23,640 Speaker 2: is expected to rest its case by Friday. Thanks for 213 00:11:23,720 --> 00:11:27,680 Speaker 2: joining me, Richard. That's Richard Kaplan of Kaplan Marino coming 214 00:11:27,760 --> 00:11:30,520 Speaker 2: up next on the Bloomberg Launch show. The judge called 215 00:11:30,600 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 2: Elon Musk's fifty five billion dollar pay package and unfathomable sum, historically, 216 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:41,319 Speaker 2: unprecedented and incredible, and then she voided it, I'm June Grosso, 217 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:45,839 Speaker 2: and this is Bloomberg. Elon Musk's fifty five billion dollar 218 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:50,480 Speaker 2: pay package, the largest in US corporate history, is no more. 219 00:11:51,200 --> 00:11:55,000 Speaker 2: A Delaware judge has voided it after asking the question, 220 00:11:55,640 --> 00:11:58,920 Speaker 2: was the richest person in the world overpaid? And then 221 00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:03,040 Speaker 2: two hundred pages Lela answering yes he was, with a 222 00:12:03,040 --> 00:12:07,280 Speaker 2: lot of legal reasoning in between. In her opinion, Chance 223 00:12:07,360 --> 00:12:11,719 Speaker 2: Recort Chief Judge Kathleen McCormick compared the pay package to 224 00:12:11,880 --> 00:12:16,280 Speaker 2: a flawed car design, where Musk launched a self driving process, 225 00:12:16,760 --> 00:12:19,880 Speaker 2: recalibrating the speed and direction along the way as he 226 00:12:19,960 --> 00:12:24,200 Speaker 2: saw fit, and when that process arrived at an unfair price, 227 00:12:24,679 --> 00:12:28,160 Speaker 2: she granted the investor's requests for a recall. Joining me 228 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,040 Speaker 2: is an expert in business law, Eric Talley, a professor 229 00:12:31,080 --> 00:12:34,160 Speaker 2: at Columbia Law School, so she didn't hold back on 230 00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:38,079 Speaker 2: her thoughts about his pay package, calling it an unfathomable 231 00:12:38,160 --> 00:12:43,559 Speaker 2: sum historically unprecedented and incredible. How much was about the 232 00:12:43,679 --> 00:12:47,760 Speaker 2: size of the package and how much about the process 233 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:50,360 Speaker 2: that Musk and the board used to get there. 234 00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:53,800 Speaker 3: Well, I don't think this conversation gets started unless we're 235 00:12:53,800 --> 00:12:55,959 Speaker 3: talking about the size of the pay package, right, That's 236 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:59,200 Speaker 3: what puts so much at stake here. But you're correct, 237 00:12:59,320 --> 00:13:03,160 Speaker 3: the opinion actually circulates around the process by which that 238 00:13:03,200 --> 00:13:06,959 Speaker 3: pay package was approved, eventually circling around to talk about 239 00:13:06,960 --> 00:13:09,040 Speaker 3: the size as well, kind of for reasons that are 240 00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:13,240 Speaker 3: necessary for you know, doctrinal purposes. And it's a long opinion. 241 00:13:13,559 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 3: It's a logically ordered and rather meticulous opinion, and one 242 00:13:18,920 --> 00:13:22,840 Speaker 3: can certainly understand why Chancellor McCormick decided that she wanted 243 00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:25,080 Speaker 3: to spend so much time and quite literally so much 244 00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:28,560 Speaker 3: ink on this because the attention that this case has 245 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:32,600 Speaker 3: gotten and will get over the next weeks to months, 246 00:13:32,760 --> 00:13:36,160 Speaker 3: I think is considerable. And the question really is, like, 247 00:13:36,240 --> 00:13:39,880 Speaker 3: we're to situate a case that looks like such a 248 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:43,559 Speaker 3: kind of bizarre black Swan case kind of within our 249 00:13:43,720 --> 00:13:48,920 Speaker 3: established pantheon of cases involving executive compensation and chansder McCormick 250 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:51,360 Speaker 3: does a lot of work in the opinion to try 251 00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:53,200 Speaker 3: to do that to sort of say, Okay, here is 252 00:13:53,360 --> 00:13:56,240 Speaker 3: the law as it has been developed in Delaware around 253 00:13:56,280 --> 00:13:59,439 Speaker 3: these types of compensation contracts. And even though this was 254 00:13:59,480 --> 00:14:01,640 Speaker 3: a really big one, it doesn't mean it has different 255 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:03,480 Speaker 3: rules that apply to it. And I'm going to go 256 00:14:03,520 --> 00:14:07,280 Speaker 3: ahead and go down that same template of rules, which 257 00:14:07,320 --> 00:14:10,960 Speaker 3: is not terribly surprising. But when the decisions at every 258 00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:15,080 Speaker 3: juncture have such large valuation swings, it can certainly be 259 00:14:15,160 --> 00:14:18,480 Speaker 3: fraught with drama. And we definitely have seen drama since 260 00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:21,240 Speaker 3: this case was decided and the opinion was released. 261 00:14:21,680 --> 00:14:26,960 Speaker 2: So explain her analysis of the process of getting to 262 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:31,560 Speaker 2: the pay package and the board members being beholden to musk. 263 00:14:31,840 --> 00:14:33,760 Speaker 2: You know, there's no meaningful negotiation. 264 00:14:34,280 --> 00:14:37,200 Speaker 3: There are a couple of moving parts here, but weirdly enough, 265 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:40,680 Speaker 3: there aren't that many moving parts here. The case itself 266 00:14:40,840 --> 00:14:45,720 Speaker 3: circulates within a fairly well known strand of Delaware cases 267 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:49,840 Speaker 3: that deal with what happens when you have someone who's 268 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:52,000 Speaker 3: getting into some sort of a deal. It could be 269 00:14:52,040 --> 00:14:54,920 Speaker 3: a compensation agreement, it could be something else that has 270 00:14:54,960 --> 00:14:58,800 Speaker 3: a material financial conflict of interest, right, and when you 271 00:14:58,840 --> 00:15:02,400 Speaker 3: are asking the company that you're a fiduciary of to 272 00:15:02,440 --> 00:15:05,520 Speaker 3: then pay you more. You know, that's one version of 273 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:09,800 Speaker 3: a conflict of interest. Now, Delaware law, which Chancellor McCormick 274 00:15:09,880 --> 00:15:12,520 Speaker 3: is as expert, if not more expert than anyone else 275 00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:16,360 Speaker 3: in has different approaches depending on the type of person 276 00:15:16,440 --> 00:15:20,920 Speaker 3: who's the defendant. And probably the most intense scrutiny that 277 00:15:21,000 --> 00:15:23,680 Speaker 3: you can get is if you are someone who controls 278 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:26,880 Speaker 3: the company that's making this decision, in this case, the 279 00:15:26,960 --> 00:15:31,920 Speaker 3: compensation decision for controllers, you're under a much much more 280 00:15:32,000 --> 00:15:35,480 Speaker 3: powerful microscope in terms of the facts of the case 281 00:15:35,640 --> 00:15:38,320 Speaker 3: and you know how they are evaluated by the judge 282 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:40,240 Speaker 3: then you would be if you were maybe just some 283 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:43,880 Speaker 3: random outside director who didn't have a big stake in 284 00:15:43,920 --> 00:15:47,440 Speaker 3: the company. So the first juncture that Chancellor McCormick had 285 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:50,200 Speaker 3: to decide, and it's been in front of the Delaware 286 00:15:50,280 --> 00:15:54,000 Speaker 3: chancefer record three previous times, and each previous time her 287 00:15:54,040 --> 00:15:57,800 Speaker 3: predecessors have avoided having to say whether mister Musk is 288 00:15:57,800 --> 00:16:01,480 Speaker 3: a controller of Tesla. He finally gets to the point 289 00:16:01,520 --> 00:16:05,040 Speaker 3: to say, yes, he is a controller. I'm going to 290 00:16:05,120 --> 00:16:07,720 Speaker 3: have to make that decision myself. Even though we've been 291 00:16:07,760 --> 00:16:10,120 Speaker 3: able to skirt that decision in the past, it kind 292 00:16:10,160 --> 00:16:12,840 Speaker 3: of has to be made right now. And notwithstanding the 293 00:16:12,880 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 3: fact that mister Musk has only about twenty one to 294 00:16:15,720 --> 00:16:19,160 Speaker 3: twenty two percent ownership of Tesla, which is what he 295 00:16:19,200 --> 00:16:22,600 Speaker 3: had at the time, he still is someone that, for 296 00:16:22,760 --> 00:16:27,320 Speaker 3: purposes of this decision, was a controller. He still had 297 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:33,480 Speaker 3: sort of outsized influence over the decision making apparatus inside 298 00:16:33,560 --> 00:16:36,920 Speaker 3: the board. And that's a pretty critical juncture. I think 299 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:38,840 Speaker 3: a lot of people were sort of, you know, not 300 00:16:39,160 --> 00:16:43,680 Speaker 3: terribly surprised that Elon Musk would be held by a 301 00:16:43,760 --> 00:16:46,360 Speaker 3: court to kind of control what happens at Tesla. I 302 00:16:46,360 --> 00:16:48,960 Speaker 3: think you pull any random person off the street, they'll 303 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:51,720 Speaker 3: probably say the same thing. But we had never actually 304 00:16:51,760 --> 00:16:54,320 Speaker 3: had a judicial opinion that said that. And when you're 305 00:16:54,440 --> 00:16:57,960 Speaker 3: under fifty percent ownership, it could cut either way. And 306 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:01,560 Speaker 3: so that was in many ways like a big unanswered 307 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:05,480 Speaker 3: question that had gone kind of frustratingly unanswered for a 308 00:17:05,480 --> 00:17:06,000 Speaker 3: long time. 309 00:17:06,240 --> 00:17:09,760 Speaker 2: It would probably be really surprising to the average person, 310 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:12,159 Speaker 2: and that it was so hard for the Delaware courts 311 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:15,320 Speaker 2: to say that out loud. So where does that leave 312 00:17:15,359 --> 00:17:16,920 Speaker 2: the judge in this analysis? 313 00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:20,800 Speaker 3: Then, once he's deemed to be a controller then absent 314 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:23,760 Speaker 3: some way to fix it, he's under what is known 315 00:17:23,840 --> 00:17:27,639 Speaker 3: as the entire fairness standard of review, So that is 316 00:17:27,760 --> 00:17:31,200 Speaker 3: legal ease for you better be able to show that 317 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:34,840 Speaker 3: both the process and the substance of this compensation package 318 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:38,280 Speaker 3: didn't give the shaft to the company that it was 319 00:17:38,359 --> 00:17:40,520 Speaker 3: fair to the company. And that can be hard to 320 00:17:40,560 --> 00:17:45,080 Speaker 3: do because when you bear the burden of proving that unclear, 321 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:49,080 Speaker 3: situations kind of get resolved against you, and so proving 322 00:17:49,320 --> 00:17:53,200 Speaker 3: entire fairness is something that defendants usually try to avoid, 323 00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 3: and then that gives rise to kind of the last 324 00:17:55,480 --> 00:17:59,080 Speaker 3: big moving piece and the liability part of this is 325 00:17:59,080 --> 00:18:01,680 Speaker 3: is there any way that you can avoid having to 326 00:18:02,200 --> 00:18:06,399 Speaker 3: show the entire fairness of this particular package and maybe 327 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:09,359 Speaker 3: push that burden back on the plaintiffs. And the answer 328 00:18:09,440 --> 00:18:12,600 Speaker 3: is yes, but only if you've somehow been able to 329 00:18:12,640 --> 00:18:16,679 Speaker 3: figure out how to get approval from totally disinterested board 330 00:18:16,720 --> 00:18:20,080 Speaker 3: members who say, yeah, we're not dominated or controlled by you, 331 00:18:20,200 --> 00:18:24,080 Speaker 3: but we think that this is fair, or by stockholders 332 00:18:24,080 --> 00:18:27,239 Speaker 3: who were willing to vote, not affiliated stockholders who are 333 00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:29,879 Speaker 3: willing to vote to approve it. And Tesla tried to 334 00:18:29,920 --> 00:18:33,159 Speaker 3: do both of those things. They did have a compensation committee, 335 00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:36,760 Speaker 3: but the compensation committee largely consisted of people that Chancellor 336 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:40,680 Speaker 3: McCormick found to be basically completely beholden to mister Musk 337 00:18:40,800 --> 00:18:44,800 Speaker 3: and not really credible negotiators against him. And then when 338 00:18:44,800 --> 00:18:48,560 Speaker 3: they went out for a stockholder vote, they told the stockholders, oh, 339 00:18:48,600 --> 00:18:52,040 Speaker 3: there was this very very independent and rigorous process that 340 00:18:52,080 --> 00:18:54,679 Speaker 3: we went through and structuring this, when in fact she 341 00:18:54,800 --> 00:18:56,920 Speaker 3: found that that wasn't what they went through at all. 342 00:18:57,000 --> 00:18:59,679 Speaker 3: So those are kind of the main moving pieces in 343 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:02,639 Speaker 3: the opinion. Over two hundred pages sort of takes you 344 00:19:02,760 --> 00:19:05,080 Speaker 3: through the decision tree that sort of gets us to 345 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:09,199 Speaker 3: the point where mister Musk is gonna have to carry 346 00:19:09,240 --> 00:19:12,080 Speaker 3: a burden to show that a fifty six billion dollar 347 00:19:12,200 --> 00:19:15,840 Speaker 3: pay package is entirely fair, and she finds that he 348 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:18,439 Speaker 3: failed to do that, and that's why the end of 349 00:19:18,440 --> 00:19:20,560 Speaker 3: the day, she finds that this was a breach of 350 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:24,320 Speaker 3: fiduciary duties and ultimately his pay package is voided. It's 351 00:19:24,359 --> 00:19:24,680 Speaker 3: forth it. 352 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:29,080 Speaker 2: So what were the facts that she really considered in 353 00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:33,720 Speaker 2: coming to this decision that Elon Musk was overpaid? 354 00:19:34,359 --> 00:19:36,360 Speaker 3: So once we get to this question of asking, hey, 355 00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:39,240 Speaker 3: is this a fair deal, they're two big ingredients to 356 00:19:39,280 --> 00:19:41,639 Speaker 3: keep in mind. First of all, the way that this 357 00:19:41,760 --> 00:19:43,960 Speaker 3: ended up getting set up. He's the guy that had 358 00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:46,040 Speaker 3: to prove it was fair. It wasn't. The other side 359 00:19:46,080 --> 00:19:48,440 Speaker 3: had to prove it was unfair. And then the second 360 00:19:48,520 --> 00:19:51,119 Speaker 3: thing is what goes into that assessment. It's sort of 361 00:19:51,119 --> 00:19:54,400 Speaker 3: a combination of what was the process that gave rise 362 00:19:54,400 --> 00:19:56,800 Speaker 3: to this pay package. Did it look like and kind 363 00:19:56,800 --> 00:19:59,720 Speaker 3: of walk like and smell like and sound like an 364 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:02,280 Speaker 3: arm length to negotiation, or was there something a little 365 00:20:02,280 --> 00:20:04,880 Speaker 3: bit more sort of a you know, fade a complete 366 00:20:05,080 --> 00:20:08,199 Speaker 3: about it. And then the second part of it is just, 367 00:20:08,359 --> 00:20:11,840 Speaker 3: you know, compare the size of this package to what 368 00:20:11,960 --> 00:20:15,200 Speaker 3: would be sort of substantively what you'd expect to come 369 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:18,080 Speaker 3: out of it. And on that process part, you know, 370 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:19,720 Speaker 3: a bunch of the stuff that we've been talking about 371 00:20:19,760 --> 00:20:23,760 Speaker 3: the fact that Musk is very very close to many 372 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,359 Speaker 3: of the of the board members, one of whom, even 373 00:20:26,440 --> 00:20:30,200 Speaker 3: when asked about his relationship with mister Musk, broke down 374 00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:33,920 Speaker 3: in tears and deposition because of his gratitude towards mister Musk, 375 00:20:33,960 --> 00:20:35,879 Speaker 3: which is, you know, touching on one level, but on 376 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:39,159 Speaker 3: another level, that's not necessarily the type of person you 377 00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:43,160 Speaker 3: want guarding the gate of executive compensation. Against this charismatic, 378 00:20:43,680 --> 00:20:46,560 Speaker 3: and so the process stuff just didn't seem to be 379 00:20:46,600 --> 00:20:49,080 Speaker 3: there much at all. And then when it came to 380 00:20:49,720 --> 00:20:54,240 Speaker 3: trying to compare how fair his compensation package was to others, 381 00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:57,520 Speaker 3: this is literally a compensation package that has no comparison. 382 00:20:57,560 --> 00:21:00,359 Speaker 3: It's bigger than anything we've ever seen. It's, you know, 383 00:21:00,520 --> 00:21:04,640 Speaker 3: multitudes larger than the median ceo pay package. Other kind 384 00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:08,920 Speaker 3: of so called superstar CEOs like Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg, 385 00:21:09,320 --> 00:21:12,280 Speaker 3: they don't even take a salary. They just basically benefit 386 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:15,440 Speaker 3: only to the extent that the stock goes up in value. 387 00:21:15,560 --> 00:21:18,600 Speaker 3: So when it came down to brass tacks, mister Musk's 388 00:21:18,640 --> 00:21:21,119 Speaker 3: case kind of got backed into this corner of having 389 00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:24,000 Speaker 3: to show that, you know, these numbers are fair, and 390 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:26,240 Speaker 3: they made a good effort of it. They tried to say, well, 391 00:21:26,240 --> 00:21:29,560 Speaker 3: look at the time it was entered into in twenty eighteen, 392 00:21:30,119 --> 00:21:33,159 Speaker 3: you know, this was a highly incentivized contract and a 393 00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:36,360 Speaker 3: bunch of these hurdles they may never you know, get triggered. 394 00:21:36,440 --> 00:21:39,800 Speaker 3: And it was really really a highly speculative thing that 395 00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:41,920 Speaker 3: was going to pay off big but only if kind 396 00:21:41,960 --> 00:21:46,840 Speaker 3: of outsized promises came true. And the Chancellor wasn't buying that. 397 00:21:46,960 --> 00:21:51,040 Speaker 3: In fact, of the twelve different layers of this contract, 398 00:21:51,119 --> 00:21:54,000 Speaker 3: three of the first hurdles were almost certain to occur, 399 00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:56,119 Speaker 3: and they knew that at the time that they signed 400 00:21:56,520 --> 00:21:59,160 Speaker 3: the deal. So at the end of the day, she said, 401 00:21:59,240 --> 00:22:01,840 Speaker 3: there's just none enough here for me to conclude that 402 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:06,720 Speaker 3: you have shown that a compensation package of this magnitude 403 00:22:07,320 --> 00:22:10,919 Speaker 3: is on his price terms fair, particularly compared to what 404 00:22:11,080 --> 00:22:13,280 Speaker 3: other people are now. And that was the end of 405 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:15,040 Speaker 3: the show. I mean, it took two hundred pages to 406 00:22:15,080 --> 00:22:16,560 Speaker 3: get there, but that was the end of the show. 407 00:22:17,119 --> 00:22:20,760 Speaker 2: So he will probably appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court. 408 00:22:20,880 --> 00:22:24,040 Speaker 3: What are his chances on appeal, Well, you know, they're 409 00:22:24,040 --> 00:22:26,320 Speaker 3: not zero, and I think that there are a couple 410 00:22:26,280 --> 00:22:28,520 Speaker 3: of things that he can probably take up. I mean, 411 00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:30,639 Speaker 3: he's going to probably try to attack every one of 412 00:22:30,680 --> 00:22:34,040 Speaker 3: these junctures of her opinion, and you know, you can 413 00:22:34,119 --> 00:22:36,680 Speaker 3: sort of tell from the opinion that Chancellor McCormick is 414 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:38,880 Speaker 3: aware of it, and that's why she's pretty meticulous at 415 00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:42,240 Speaker 3: each juncture. It's conceivable that he'll, you know, sort of 416 00:22:42,280 --> 00:22:45,080 Speaker 3: go after this question of whether he was a controller 417 00:22:45,200 --> 00:22:47,840 Speaker 3: or not. I don't really like his odds on that 418 00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:51,960 Speaker 3: that much, because this is a highly fact intensive inquiry 419 00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:56,320 Speaker 3: and most of this opinion is development of findings a fact. 420 00:22:56,600 --> 00:22:59,160 Speaker 3: Usually the trial court judges get a lot of difference 421 00:22:59,160 --> 00:23:00,919 Speaker 3: on that, and I expect that she's going to get 422 00:23:00,960 --> 00:23:03,840 Speaker 3: difference on it as well. Moreover, I think, you know, 423 00:23:03,880 --> 00:23:06,280 Speaker 3: like I said, like almost any layperson would think, yeah, 424 00:23:06,320 --> 00:23:09,720 Speaker 3: of course, mister Musk controls what happens at Tesla as 425 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:11,880 Speaker 3: well as many other companies. So I don't think that 426 00:23:11,880 --> 00:23:14,520 Speaker 3: that is going to be as successful if he takes 427 00:23:14,560 --> 00:23:17,200 Speaker 3: it to the Delaware Supreme Court, which I'm sure he'll try. 428 00:23:17,359 --> 00:23:17,560 Speaker 1: Yep. 429 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:19,680 Speaker 3: Maybe some of the other things may be a little 430 00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:22,919 Speaker 3: bit more successful. Possibly they can put some dents in 431 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:26,240 Speaker 3: the conclusion that the pay package was unfair, that it 432 00:23:26,280 --> 00:23:29,040 Speaker 3: was so highly incentivized that you know, maybe this is 433 00:23:29,119 --> 00:23:32,640 Speaker 3: just hindsight bias. The fact that Tesla actually met all 434 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:35,360 Speaker 3: these hurdles kind of looks obvious when you look backwards 435 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:37,800 Speaker 3: in time, but it couldn't have been obvious looking forward 436 00:23:37,800 --> 00:23:39,800 Speaker 3: in time, and so there might be a little bit 437 00:23:39,840 --> 00:23:42,320 Speaker 3: that they can do there. I think where Musk's team 438 00:23:42,400 --> 00:23:46,040 Speaker 3: might have the most leverage here is to say, okay, well, 439 00:23:46,040 --> 00:23:50,560 Speaker 3: look if you're invalidating my contract saying I get nothing. 440 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:53,240 Speaker 3: It's not the same as saying I didn't create value 441 00:23:53,240 --> 00:23:55,680 Speaker 3: for this company. It's just saying that the contract, you're 442 00:23:55,680 --> 00:23:58,040 Speaker 3: going to rescind it, and you can't use the contract. 443 00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:01,040 Speaker 3: But as a general matter, there's area of law called 444 00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:04,800 Speaker 3: restitution that basically says, you know, if you create something 445 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:07,320 Speaker 3: of value for someone else and they know you're expecting 446 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:10,400 Speaker 3: compensation for it, and there's no other mechanism to do it, 447 00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:13,000 Speaker 3: like in this case the contract got canceled, you can 448 00:24:13,200 --> 00:24:16,399 Speaker 3: you know, allege or even file a lawsuit saying I 449 00:24:16,520 --> 00:24:19,240 Speaker 3: want to claim restitution. And so that may be one 450 00:24:19,240 --> 00:24:21,440 Speaker 3: of the things that also goes up to the Supreme 451 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:23,800 Speaker 3: Court saying, you know, should he get the chance to 452 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:26,480 Speaker 3: try to prove what the fair value of what he 453 00:24:26,560 --> 00:24:29,359 Speaker 3: did do PROTESTA was if this contract was unfair, is 454 00:24:29,359 --> 00:24:31,560 Speaker 3: there a smaller number that would be fair? And then 455 00:24:31,600 --> 00:24:34,480 Speaker 3: he could at least get that chance. For McCormick actually 456 00:24:34,520 --> 00:24:37,320 Speaker 3: even takes on that question and opinion. At the very 457 00:24:37,359 --> 00:24:39,639 Speaker 3: end of the opinion, she says, look, in principle, I 458 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:42,639 Speaker 3: could revert back to, like what's the fair value of 459 00:24:42,640 --> 00:24:45,120 Speaker 3: what he should have gotten? But the defenders never even 460 00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:47,960 Speaker 3: tried to present evidence about that. They were all in 461 00:24:48,200 --> 00:24:52,199 Speaker 3: on there's no liability, no liability, no liability, And therefore 462 00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:54,760 Speaker 3: they never really even made a case on what the 463 00:24:54,760 --> 00:24:58,760 Speaker 3: fair versus the unfair component of his compensation package was. 464 00:24:58,840 --> 00:25:01,480 Speaker 3: And you can kind of understand why they didn't, right Like, 465 00:25:01,520 --> 00:25:03,880 Speaker 3: if you're starting to do that as the defendant, it's 466 00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:06,840 Speaker 3: almost like you've given up on trying to show that, 467 00:25:06,920 --> 00:25:08,960 Speaker 3: you know, the whole thing was fair, and so they 468 00:25:09,000 --> 00:25:12,720 Speaker 3: shied away, probably for understandable reasons. And they might say, hey, 469 00:25:12,840 --> 00:25:14,560 Speaker 3: you know, Della or a Supreme court, you should at 470 00:25:14,680 --> 00:25:17,760 Speaker 3: least give us a chance to make that claim and 471 00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:21,600 Speaker 3: remand this for a more sort of fulsome analysis of 472 00:25:22,400 --> 00:25:25,439 Speaker 3: not only the recision part of the contract, but he 473 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:28,520 Speaker 3: should get restitution for the benefits that he's conferred. And 474 00:25:28,640 --> 00:25:31,600 Speaker 3: that's a possibility. It would be changing the nature of 475 00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:34,439 Speaker 3: the remedy, and therefore the Supreme Court would have to 476 00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:37,240 Speaker 3: say that the trial court, the Chance McCormick, just she 477 00:25:37,359 --> 00:25:41,240 Speaker 3: fashioned her remedy in an incomplete way. There's a pretty 478 00:25:41,600 --> 00:25:44,800 Speaker 3: kerdel to do that as well, but at least it's 479 00:25:44,840 --> 00:25:48,159 Speaker 3: a possibility. There's one other angle here, June, which is 480 00:25:48,600 --> 00:25:52,399 Speaker 3: restitution is itself a lawsuit that you can file. So 481 00:25:52,720 --> 00:25:56,800 Speaker 3: there's also an outside chance that, independent of filing an appeal, 482 00:25:57,280 --> 00:26:02,320 Speaker 3: Elon Musk might turn around and sue for revolution. It 483 00:26:02,359 --> 00:26:05,560 Speaker 3: would probably land in front of Chancellor McCormick. And then 484 00:26:05,880 --> 00:26:08,520 Speaker 3: you know, the directors and the other you know, folks 485 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:10,560 Speaker 3: in charge of Tesla that had been sitting on the 486 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:13,360 Speaker 3: same side of the table with him during this litigation 487 00:26:13,720 --> 00:26:16,840 Speaker 3: are now adverse parties. And one could imagine that that 488 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:19,840 Speaker 3: might be a strategy as well, one that the board 489 00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:22,480 Speaker 3: might decide later on that they're going to settle that 490 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:25,520 Speaker 3: and settle it for I don't know, stock options valued 491 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:27,960 Speaker 3: at say forty eight billion dollars or something like that. 492 00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,919 Speaker 3: You know, that decision itself might attract the lawsuits. 493 00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:35,320 Speaker 2: A Delaware judge has ruled that Elon Musk is not 494 00:26:35,560 --> 00:26:40,320 Speaker 2: entitled to the landmark compensation package awarded by Tesla's board 495 00:26:40,359 --> 00:26:44,440 Speaker 2: of directors, potentially worth more than fifty five billion dollars. 496 00:26:44,760 --> 00:26:48,399 Speaker 2: The shareholder lawsuit argued that the compensation package should be 497 00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 2: voided because it was dictated by Musk and was the 498 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:56,160 Speaker 2: product of sham negotiations with directors who were not independent 499 00:26:56,200 --> 00:26:59,960 Speaker 2: of him. We've discussed before that Musk has been press 500 00:27:00,080 --> 00:27:04,880 Speaker 2: shuring Tesla's board to arrange another massive stock award for him, 501 00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:09,040 Speaker 2: and now you have questions about the board's independent So 502 00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:12,480 Speaker 2: what happens do they negotiate a new pay package for him? 503 00:27:12,760 --> 00:27:14,639 Speaker 3: I mean, I think they have to at this stage, 504 00:27:14,640 --> 00:27:16,639 Speaker 3: they have to figure out, Okay, what's our package is 505 00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:20,119 Speaker 3: going to look like? Now going forward with the caveat 506 00:27:20,160 --> 00:27:22,160 Speaker 3: in mind that we're sitting on this two hundred page 507 00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:24,960 Speaker 3: opinion that said here's a model of how not to 508 00:27:25,040 --> 00:27:28,760 Speaker 3: do a pay package. Right, So so at this point 509 00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:31,879 Speaker 3: they're under even more scrutiny and more constraints than they 510 00:27:31,880 --> 00:27:35,359 Speaker 3: would have been before this opinion, and just a repeat 511 00:27:35,520 --> 00:27:40,159 Speaker 3: of the twenty eighteen executive compensation package is almost certain 512 00:27:40,240 --> 00:27:42,800 Speaker 3: to draw attention. So, you know, I think when they're 513 00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:45,840 Speaker 3: trying to figure out what is this next compensation package 514 00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:48,000 Speaker 3: going to look like? I think they want to be 515 00:27:48,119 --> 00:27:51,880 Speaker 3: sure that they have truly independent board members. There's been 516 00:27:51,920 --> 00:27:54,119 Speaker 3: some turnover on the board and I think, you know, 517 00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:55,960 Speaker 3: they may want to make sure that they've got that 518 00:27:56,080 --> 00:27:59,200 Speaker 3: in place, and that they also then also go out 519 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:03,760 Speaker 3: to the stockholders to vote to approve that transaction that's 520 00:28:03,800 --> 00:28:07,160 Speaker 3: going to give them a lot more protection should this 521 00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:10,840 Speaker 3: new package ever get litigated. And you know, I think 522 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:14,359 Speaker 3: on some level, the hindsight lesson here is that you know, 523 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:17,840 Speaker 3: these burdens matter, and using the right kind of processes 524 00:28:17,880 --> 00:28:20,040 Speaker 3: can give you a lot of protection if you're a 525 00:28:20,119 --> 00:28:24,440 Speaker 3: potential defended in these cases, it seems like the processes 526 00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:27,440 Speaker 3: were treated, at least in the twenty eighteen pay package 527 00:28:27,840 --> 00:28:30,560 Speaker 3: in a little bit more of a cavalier way than 528 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:33,720 Speaker 3: they would confront the same problem in twenty twenty four. 529 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:38,320 Speaker 2: Do you think that this is a warning to other 530 00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:43,760 Speaker 2: companies and CEOs about how they negotiate their pay packages. 531 00:28:44,120 --> 00:28:46,120 Speaker 3: I think on some level it is. Pay packages have 532 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:49,400 Speaker 3: always been a little bit strange because you know, the 533 00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:52,200 Speaker 3: companies and the boards and the executives have to set 534 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:54,960 Speaker 3: the compensation of boards and executives, and so how do 535 00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:58,160 Speaker 3: you even do that in a way that runs, you know, 536 00:28:58,240 --> 00:29:01,240 Speaker 3: on the on the permissive side of of self interest. 537 00:29:01,320 --> 00:29:03,440 Speaker 3: I think, you know, every once in a while we 538 00:29:03,520 --> 00:29:06,560 Speaker 3: get a big compensation case in Delaware. This is about 539 00:29:06,560 --> 00:29:09,000 Speaker 3: as big as they get. The other thing that's going 540 00:29:09,040 --> 00:29:12,160 Speaker 3: to be kind of interesting here is for both compensation 541 00:29:12,280 --> 00:29:17,760 Speaker 3: cases and not what role did musks sort of charismatics 542 00:29:17,880 --> 00:29:22,480 Speaker 3: the chancell uses the term superstar ceo status have in 543 00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:25,680 Speaker 3: affecting the outcome of this case. And I think on 544 00:29:25,680 --> 00:29:29,480 Speaker 3: one level it clearly did that he was deemed to 545 00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:33,040 Speaker 3: be a controller of the company in large part because 546 00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:36,360 Speaker 3: he is such a sort of an iconic and charismatic 547 00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:38,880 Speaker 3: person that a bunch of stockholders and a bunch of 548 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:41,920 Speaker 3: directors are just kind of like want to please him. 549 00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:45,840 Speaker 3: And that's the type of the situation that is more 550 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:48,920 Speaker 3: likely to give rise, certainly after this case, to a 551 00:29:48,960 --> 00:29:52,240 Speaker 3: finding that, yeah, this is a controller and therefore under 552 00:29:52,280 --> 00:29:56,920 Speaker 3: this heightened degree of scrutiny under Delaware laws. 553 00:29:56,960 --> 00:29:57,240 Speaker 1: I don't know. 554 00:29:57,280 --> 00:29:59,120 Speaker 3: I guess you could be a little bit cynical about 555 00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:02,280 Speaker 3: it and say this is like charisma tax on CEOs 556 00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:05,600 Speaker 3: who you know, have that added element that might cause 557 00:30:05,640 --> 00:30:09,400 Speaker 3: them to be, you know, particularly persuasive when they want 558 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:11,840 Speaker 3: shareholders on the board to do something for them, as 559 00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:15,040 Speaker 3: opposed to the more sort of workaday, boring CEOs who 560 00:30:15,080 --> 00:30:16,800 Speaker 3: don't end up getting leveled. 561 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:20,560 Speaker 2: The Charismatacks Delaware, as you know, the corporate home to 562 00:30:20,840 --> 00:30:25,040 Speaker 2: almost seventy percent of the fortune five hundred companies. Shortly 563 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:29,760 Speaker 2: after the judge voided his pay package, Musk posted, never 564 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:33,480 Speaker 2: incorporate your company in the state of Delaware. Do you 565 00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:36,560 Speaker 2: think this will have any ramifications for Delaware as a 566 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:37,240 Speaker 2: corporate home. 567 00:30:38,040 --> 00:30:40,680 Speaker 3: Yeah, we'll see. If you're asking whether w'ere I'm betting 568 00:30:40,680 --> 00:30:43,880 Speaker 3: my money, June, I would not be rushing the exits 569 00:30:43,920 --> 00:30:46,880 Speaker 3: on Delaware for a whole bunch of different reasons. It's conceivable, 570 00:30:46,920 --> 00:30:51,080 Speaker 3: by the way, that Tesla itself might decide to reincorporate 571 00:30:51,120 --> 00:30:54,880 Speaker 3: in Nevada or maybe Texas. Nevada is kind of well 572 00:30:54,920 --> 00:30:59,640 Speaker 3: known as a place where the protective cloak for you know, 573 00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:02,880 Speaker 3: C directors is a little bit thicker than it is 574 00:31:03,040 --> 00:31:05,640 Speaker 3: in Delaware, though it's plenty of thick already in Delaware. 575 00:31:05,960 --> 00:31:09,280 Speaker 3: It didn't survive this on slot. So it's conceivable that 576 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:12,880 Speaker 3: that Tesla itself might incorporate a decision that could attract 577 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:16,680 Speaker 3: a lawsuit of its own. Are they reincorporating for selfish 578 00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:19,560 Speaker 3: reasons or for the good of the company. But Delaware 579 00:31:19,800 --> 00:31:23,160 Speaker 3: is not just kind of popular as you noted it is. 580 00:31:23,280 --> 00:31:27,120 Speaker 3: It is the place of incorporation for over two thirds 581 00:31:27,120 --> 00:31:31,320 Speaker 3: of the Fortune five hundred most companies incorporated in Delaware. 582 00:31:31,360 --> 00:31:33,840 Speaker 3: There's reason for it is that this is like kind 583 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:37,880 Speaker 3: of the one state court system that has a completely 584 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:41,240 Speaker 3: separate set of courts that are experts in business law, 585 00:31:41,560 --> 00:31:44,200 Speaker 3: that are well known experts in business law, that have 586 00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:48,800 Speaker 3: consistent jurisprudence. It isn't like you're playing judicial roulette like 587 00:31:48,840 --> 00:31:51,160 Speaker 3: you would with a state court judge in another area. 588 00:31:51,160 --> 00:31:54,920 Speaker 3: And that's large part because Delaware has maintained this specific 589 00:31:55,320 --> 00:31:59,280 Speaker 3: set of judges that have expertise mainly in corporate law 590 00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:02,120 Speaker 3: and business law sorts of settings. That's generally not going 591 00:32:02,120 --> 00:32:03,840 Speaker 3: to be the case. You go out into a random 592 00:32:03,840 --> 00:32:07,000 Speaker 3: California civil court in which the judge is, you know, 593 00:32:07,120 --> 00:32:09,520 Speaker 3: balancing all kinds of different things, You're not going to 594 00:32:09,600 --> 00:32:12,680 Speaker 3: have the same sort of consistency. And so I think 595 00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:15,760 Speaker 3: that's a hard thing to compete on, and to do it, 596 00:32:15,840 --> 00:32:18,600 Speaker 3: you actually have to have the right personnel in place. 597 00:32:19,200 --> 00:32:22,480 Speaker 3: And I'd also add to it that most lawyers out there, 598 00:32:23,080 --> 00:32:26,160 Speaker 3: including just about every student I've ever taught, in corporate law, 599 00:32:26,560 --> 00:32:28,400 Speaker 3: they'll get a little bit of New York corporate law, 600 00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:30,440 Speaker 3: they'll get a little bit of California corporate law, but 601 00:32:30,480 --> 00:32:33,040 Speaker 3: they will get a lot of Delaware corporate law. So 602 00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:35,520 Speaker 3: most of the practicing corporate lawyers, and I would have 603 00:32:35,600 --> 00:32:39,440 Speaker 3: venture to say bankers out there, they're highly familiar with 604 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:43,000 Speaker 3: the landmarks and Delaware corporate law. And once you're asking 605 00:32:43,040 --> 00:32:45,080 Speaker 3: people to, you know, hand over a lot of money 606 00:32:45,080 --> 00:32:47,440 Speaker 3: to you, and you don't really know how to that 607 00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:49,760 Speaker 3: law works or how it will work because it's not 608 00:32:49,840 --> 00:32:53,720 Speaker 3: as developed or Texas law. That's asking those investors to 609 00:32:53,760 --> 00:32:55,960 Speaker 3: take a little bit of a Roulette wheel spin and 610 00:32:56,000 --> 00:32:58,280 Speaker 3: that may be not the best way to raise money. 611 00:32:58,320 --> 00:33:01,200 Speaker 3: So maybe maybe we're going to see some action on 612 00:33:01,240 --> 00:33:05,080 Speaker 3: the incorporation market, but I'm not so sure that when 613 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:08,280 Speaker 3: mister Musk looks behind him to see the parade of 614 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:11,880 Speaker 3: other companies reincorporating out of Delaware, that line is going 615 00:33:11,960 --> 00:33:13,040 Speaker 3: to be all that long. 616 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:17,080 Speaker 2: What is it that Nevada the law offers more protections 617 00:33:17,120 --> 00:33:21,080 Speaker 2: against investor suits? Is that what the attraction is? 618 00:33:21,480 --> 00:33:24,000 Speaker 3: Correct? One of the things that Nevada kind of advertises 619 00:33:24,080 --> 00:33:29,000 Speaker 3: itself as doing is as as creating more protections for 620 00:33:29,160 --> 00:33:33,000 Speaker 3: corporate fiduciars like officers and directors, CEOs and things like that, 621 00:33:33,520 --> 00:33:37,800 Speaker 3: and actually allowing the waiver of many of those types 622 00:33:37,840 --> 00:33:40,760 Speaker 3: of liabilities in a way that are not generally allowed 623 00:33:41,120 --> 00:33:45,120 Speaker 3: in other states, including Delaware. So the idea and you know, 624 00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:49,000 Speaker 3: and Nevada has for years kind of advertised come incorporated 625 00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:52,760 Speaker 3: Nevada and you'll never get sued type of type of advertisements. 626 00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:56,920 Speaker 3: And so so that that can look attractive to a 627 00:33:56,960 --> 00:34:00,000 Speaker 3: corporate fiduciary, particularly one licking his wounds at a big 628 00:34:00,320 --> 00:34:03,520 Speaker 3: you know, multi billion dollar out you know, swing in 629 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:07,160 Speaker 3: an outcome. But I'll also say that if you are 630 00:34:07,240 --> 00:34:11,279 Speaker 3: someone who's trying to raise money from investors and saying, yeah, 631 00:34:11,280 --> 00:34:12,840 Speaker 3: you should just give me a lot of your money, 632 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:14,640 Speaker 3: because I'm going to incorporate in a state in which 633 00:34:14,640 --> 00:34:18,200 Speaker 3: you never consume me for say, pilfering that money or 634 00:34:18,200 --> 00:34:21,239 Speaker 3: misusing that money, it may be harder to raise that 635 00:34:21,280 --> 00:34:23,800 Speaker 3: capital to begin with. So there's this kind of interesting 636 00:34:23,880 --> 00:34:28,239 Speaker 3: trade off that the most lax area or the most 637 00:34:28,320 --> 00:34:34,839 Speaker 3: lax jurisdiction for liability may not necessarily attract the investment 638 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:37,680 Speaker 3: dollars because the people that are basically sort of forking 639 00:34:37,760 --> 00:34:40,400 Speaker 3: over their harder and cash, you want to make sure 640 00:34:40,400 --> 00:34:43,080 Speaker 3: that you're also going to be held to account on 641 00:34:43,239 --> 00:34:46,600 Speaker 3: real standards as opposed to you know, vaporware that disappears 642 00:34:46,640 --> 00:34:47,920 Speaker 3: as soon as you have a complaint. 643 00:34:48,160 --> 00:34:52,759 Speaker 2: And Eric, one last question on the Musk case. Was 644 00:34:52,760 --> 00:34:55,880 Speaker 2: there any sort of middle ground the judge could have taken? 645 00:34:56,560 --> 00:34:59,600 Speaker 3: You know, in some ways, the litigation strategy kind of 646 00:34:59,640 --> 00:35:02,600 Speaker 3: forced this thing to be, you know, either a massive 647 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:05,080 Speaker 3: win for the plaintiffs or a massive win for the defendants. 648 00:35:05,080 --> 00:35:08,520 Speaker 3: It was really hard to conjure up a solomonic middle 649 00:35:08,560 --> 00:35:11,040 Speaker 3: ground outcome the way that the case was sort of 650 00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:13,880 Speaker 3: presented to Chancellor McCormick. And so now, you know, I 651 00:35:13,880 --> 00:35:16,800 Speaker 3: can see that mister maccatt maybe even the plants attorneys 652 00:35:16,800 --> 00:35:18,840 Speaker 3: are going to sort of realize, Okay, look, there's going 653 00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:20,920 Speaker 3: to be a lot more fighting downstream. Maybe we can 654 00:35:20,960 --> 00:35:24,600 Speaker 3: figure out some solomonic way to take this opinion and 655 00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:26,759 Speaker 3: turn it into an outcome that everyone can live with. 656 00:35:26,800 --> 00:35:28,960 Speaker 3: But that's going to take some doing from both sides 657 00:35:29,000 --> 00:35:29,920 Speaker 3: if that's going to happen. 658 00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:33,680 Speaker 2: Well, this decision was certainly a long time coming, but 659 00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:37,640 Speaker 2: well worth talking about. Thanks so much. Eric. That's Professor 660 00:35:37,719 --> 00:35:40,799 Speaker 2: Eric Talley of Columbia Law School, And that's it for 661 00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:43,839 Speaker 2: this edition of the Bloomberg Law Podcast. Remember you can 662 00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:46,880 Speaker 2: always get the latest legal news by subscribing and listening 663 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:50,560 Speaker 2: to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and at bloomberg 664 00:35:50,640 --> 00:35:54,719 Speaker 2: dot com, slash podcast, slash Law. I'm June Grosso and 665 00:35:54,800 --> 00:35:56,080 Speaker 2: this is Bloomberg