Tesla attorneys ask judge to vacate decision invalidating massive pay package for Elon Musk

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Attorneys for Elon Musk and Tesla’s corporate directors are asking a Delaware judge to vacate her ruling requiring the company to rescind a massive pay package for Musk. Friday's hearing follows a January ruling in which the judge concluded that Musk engineered the landmark 2018 pay package in sham negotiations with directors who were not independent. The maximum potential value of the compensation package was initially estimated at about $56 billion but has fluctuated up and down over the years based on Tesla's stock price. Following the court ruling, Tesla shareholders met in June and ratified Musk’s 2018 pay package for a second time, again by an overwhelming margin. Defense attorneys say the vote makes clear that Tesla shareholders believe that Musk is entitled to the pay package.