The richest man in the world, Elon Musk, has secured the return of his 2018 compensation package as CEO of Tesla Inc. after the Delaware Supreme Court on Friday overturned a lower court's decision, UNN reports with reference to Investing.com.
Details
The court concluded that Musk is entitled to a stock-based compensation plan, now valued at nearly $140 billion. When Tesla directors approved the payout, it was the largest in history for an executive in the US, although it has since been surpassed by a plan approved by shareholders this year that could reach $1 trillion if Musk achieves future targets.
The implementation of the 2018 compensation plan was suspended after an investor with only nine shares successfully sued to block it in Delaware, where the electric car manufacturer was registered at the time. Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled that, despite Tesla shareholders twice approving the compensation plan, the size of the package was unfair to shareholders.
McCormick wrote that Tesla's board of directors "bore the burden of proving the fairness of the compensation plan, and they failed to meet their burden."
The Delaware Supreme Court disagreed, ruling that the lower court erred in its opinion and that overturning the 2018 pay package was "unfair" because it "leaves Musk without compensation for his time and effort over six years."
In a post on his social media platform X, Musk stated: "I try not to start fights, but I finish them."
Addition
As Bloomberg notes, from 2018 to 2024, Musk transformed the electric car manufacturer into one of the most expensive and well-known companies in the world. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk's net worth is approximately $643 billion.