A long-running legal battle over Dogecoin and Elon Musk has finally come to an end after investors opted to drop their appeal on Thursday. deposit on November 14, 2024. The case has been brewing since 2022, with allegations that Musk and his company, Tesla, manipulated the price of Dogecoin for personal gain.
The trial focused on Musk’s public remarks and actions, including his controversial appearance on Saturday Night Live, where he called Dogecoin a “hustle.” Investors argued that these statements, along with Musk’s tweets, inflated the value of Dogecoin, leading to heavy losses when the price subsequently fell. He was also accused of insider trading and market manipulation.
Dogecoin Lawsuit Ends After Appeal Dropped
The lawsuit initially sought $258 billion in damages. However, in August 2024, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein dismissed the case, ruling that Musk’s tweets, such as calling Dogecoin “the future currency of Earth,” did not constitute securities fraud. The judge also rejected allegations of insider trading, saying there was not enough evidence to support the accusations.
After that, investors, hoping to change the outcome, appealed the decision and sought sanctions against Musk’s legal team, accusing them of interfering in the appeals process. But this week, the investors dropped their appeal and demand for sanctions, effectively ending the matter. That agreement was filed in federal court in Manhattan and now awaits final approval from Judge Hellerstein.
During the legal process, the Dogecoin Foundation, which represents the community behind Dogecoin, worked hard to separate its main developers and founders from the case. The foundation felt relief when the trial ended, especially since many of the people initially included had been exonerated earlier.
“We are happy that it is finally over. We stood up for the key developers, founders, and uninvolved community members originally named in this suit and were happy to see them removed early on, but we could have imagined much nicer uses for the five-figure legal fees spent for this, ” said Dogecoin Foundation.
Dogebox enables Dogecoin nodes and payments
Now that the deal is officially over, the Dogecoin Foundation is working on Dogebox, a new project aimed at helping users run their own full Dogecoin node, accept Dogecoin payments, and build applications on the Dogecoin blockchain. Elon Musk, a long-time supporter of Dogecoin, continues to play a key role in raising its profile.
However, Musk’s legal challenges are not behind him. Just this week, President-elect Donald Trump named Musk to head the new Department of Government Effectiveness. At the same time, Musk is in a legal dispute with OpenAI and Microsoft, with his AI company, xAI, accusing the tech giants of unfair business practices.
Despite the ongoing drama, Dogecoin is still attracting attention. Recently, a prominent crypto analyst, Ali Martinez, highlighted that large whales purchased over $56 million worth of Dogecoin in just 24 hours. As of November 16, 2024, Dogecoin was priced at $0.3645, down 8% over the past 24 hours, according to CNF. Dogecoin Price Index.