Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, attended the Viva Technology conference in Paris, France, on June 16, 2023. Despite Musk’s attempt, the Supreme Court opted not to challenge the terms of the agreement he made with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding his social media activity.

The SEC had required a lawyer to review Musk’s social media posts, a condition Musk referred to as the “Twitter sitter” provision. Musk, known for his impulsive and at times controversial tweets, found this restriction to be an infringement on his freedom of speech. The SEC took action against Musk after a series of tweets in 2018 regarding securing funding to take Tesla private were deemed misleading and in violation of securities law.

In response to the SEC’s crackdown, Musk settled a civil securities action and signed off on the social media provision. The Supreme Court’s decision to reject Musk’s appeal aligns with previous rulings in favor of the SEC, indicating that Musk had already waived his rights to challenge the agreement by agreeing to the settlement terms.

Claiming that the SEC’s restrictions on his social media activity are unconstitutional, Musk and his legal team argue that the provision goes beyond securities law and hinders his ability to communicate truthfully and accurately on various topics unrelated to the SEC’s civil action against him. Despite Musk’s assertion of coercion into agreeing to the terms, lower courts had already upheld the SEC’s position in this matter.