Mark Bankston Versus The Most Divorced Man In The World
April 9, 2024 11:19 AM Subscribe
As part of a defamation lawsuit against the owner of Twitter for his tweets, Mark Bankston - whom you may recall was the lawyer for the Sandy Hook families in the Texas lawsuit against Alex Jones, where he told the conspiracy theorist that he had recieved a full copy of his phone's contents from his lawyer while cross examining him - has deposed Elon Musk under oath, in a deposition that is a sight to behold.
The deposition - which Musk's lawyer Alex Spiro tried unsuccessfully to seal because he did not understand civil law procedure - gives us Musk unfiltered, with highlights such as his belief that Bankston is the actual plaintiff (and not his client Ben Brody), that a million views is meaningless as are replies, and that he was the owner of the "@ermnmusk" account - an admission that may very well bite him and his lawyer in the ass, as there is evidence that they deleted the account around the time of the discovery order, in a blatant act of spoliation.
The deposition - which Musk's lawyer Alex Spiro tried unsuccessfully to seal because he did not understand civil law procedure - gives us Musk unfiltered, with highlights such as his belief that Bankston is the actual plaintiff (and not his client Ben Brody), that a million views is meaningless as are replies, and that he was the owner of the "@ermnmusk" account - an admission that may very well bite him and his lawyer in the ass, as there is evidence that they deleted the account around the time of the discovery order, in a blatant act of spoliation.
This Spiro fellow does not give an impression of competence.
posted by mhoye at 11:43 AM on April 9 [4 favorites]
posted by mhoye at 11:43 AM on April 9 [4 favorites]
I apologize, but this did give me the impetus to look up who truly had the record for being The Most Divorced Man In The World and Musk (remarkably) still has a ways to go.
posted by I EAT TAPAS at 11:45 AM on April 9 [13 favorites]
posted by I EAT TAPAS at 11:45 AM on April 9 [13 favorites]
I gotta say, having heard a lot of Mark Bankston, both in action and in interviews on Knowledge Fight, he seems like a very hardworking lawyer with a deep concern for his clients.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:46 AM on April 9 [11 favorites]
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:46 AM on April 9 [11 favorites]
This Spiro fellow does not give an impression of competence.
There's a point in the deposition where Bankston basically says "I would have thought a lawyer from one of the premier white shoe firms would meet the bar of competence set by Alex Jones' bargain bin counsel - and yet, here we are."
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:47 AM on April 9 [34 favorites]
There's a point in the deposition where Bankston basically says "I would have thought a lawyer from one of the premier white shoe firms would meet the bar of competence set by Alex Jones' bargain bin counsel - and yet, here we are."
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:47 AM on April 9 [34 favorites]
For someone who is big on Texas, you'd think Musk would actually hire an attorney that's admitted to practice in that state.
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:49 AM on April 9 [11 favorites]
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:49 AM on April 9 [11 favorites]
I gotta say, having heard a lot of Mark Bankston, both in action and in interviews on Knowledge Fight, he seems like a very hardworking lawyer with a deep concern for his clients.
He's definitely no L. Lin Wood (who was opposing counsel in the last defamation case Musk faced), that's for sure.
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:49 AM on April 9 [3 favorites]
He's definitely no L. Lin Wood (who was opposing counsel in the last defamation case Musk faced), that's for sure.
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:49 AM on April 9 [3 favorites]
Quinn Emanuel isn't a white-shoe law firm, and it didn't train Spiro (who started out in the Manhattan DA's office). Sometimes, when it comes to matters like being properly paranoid about details like whether there's a PO or whether you need to get admitted pro hac before taking a depo, BigLaw training, or the absence thereof, really tells.
posted by praemunire at 11:52 AM on April 9 [9 favorites]
posted by praemunire at 11:52 AM on April 9 [9 favorites]
Musk (remarkably) still has a ways to go.
In terms of the pure number of divorces, maybe, but if we're talking about acting out the stereotypically petulant, desperate neediness of the recently-divorced-man archetype, his commitment to the bit is peerless.
posted by mhoye at 11:54 AM on April 9 [29 favorites]
In terms of the pure number of divorces, maybe, but if we're talking about acting out the stereotypically petulant, desperate neediness of the recently-divorced-man archetype, his commitment to the bit is peerless.
posted by mhoye at 11:54 AM on April 9 [29 favorites]
I would like to salute Elon Musk for his incredible and ongoing service to the political cause of billionaire eradication via redistributive taxation.
posted by srboisvert at 11:57 AM on April 9 [15 favorites]
posted by srboisvert at 11:57 AM on April 9 [15 favorites]
“This is your brain
relatability.
This is yourbrain
relatability ondrugs heroin
mega-billions
Any questions?”
ftfy
posted by otherchaz at 12:05 PM on April 9
relatability.
This is your
relatability on
mega-billions
Any questions?”
ftfy
posted by otherchaz at 12:05 PM on April 9
The sanction filed against Spiro is...quite detailed. (It's also where the spoliation claim comes from.)
posted by NoxAeternum at 12:08 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
posted by NoxAeternum at 12:08 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
This deposition is wild. I might be falling in love with Bankston. "Next time I'd appreciate it if you showed up in a deposition with a Texas lawyer who had an understanding of Texas law..." ahahahahaha.
posted by joannemerriam at 12:11 PM on April 9 [19 favorites]
posted by joannemerriam at 12:11 PM on April 9 [19 favorites]
ftfy
You didn't fix anything, you misunderstood a reference to Musk's documented penchant for drugs like ketamine.
posted by Dark Messiah at 12:19 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
You didn't fix anything, you misunderstood a reference to Musk's documented penchant for drugs like ketamine.
posted by Dark Messiah at 12:19 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
I am always utterly boggled at how (some) wealthy people fail to invest what even at its most expensive could only be a pittance of their vast fortunes in good legal talent.
posted by AdamCSnider at 12:20 PM on April 9 [7 favorites]
posted by AdamCSnider at 12:20 PM on April 9 [7 favorites]
But will good legal talent even want them? That's the problem Trump has found himself in. Good legal talent can bilk other wealthy people with half the trouble that these idiot failsons get up to.
posted by amanda at 12:29 PM on April 9 [10 favorites]
posted by amanda at 12:29 PM on April 9 [10 favorites]
wealthy people fail to invest what even at its most expensive could only be a pittance of their vast fortunes in good legal talent
He's spending plenty, he just picked who to spend on based on extremely crude measures of butt-kissing instead of anything smarter. There are good lawyers at Quinn who would know better than to do *gestures* all of this blatantly obvious stuff.
It is kind of funny to read the "Spiro has despoiled the pure atmosphere of the Texas deposition!" rhetoric, though, as Texas used to be notorious for depositions like this.
posted by praemunire at 12:31 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
He's spending plenty, he just picked who to spend on based on extremely crude measures of butt-kissing instead of anything smarter. There are good lawyers at Quinn who would know better than to do *gestures* all of this blatantly obvious stuff.
It is kind of funny to read the "Spiro has despoiled the pure atmosphere of the Texas deposition!" rhetoric, though, as Texas used to be notorious for depositions like this.
posted by praemunire at 12:31 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
"You understand that there's a piece of paper on which there's a lawsuit written."
And Musk just has to keep trying to get in his little "well really you're the ambulance-chasing money-grubbing lawyer persecuting me" bullshit in. "Technically," he says. Sheesh.
posted by Saxon Kane at 12:41 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
And Musk just has to keep trying to get in his little "well really you're the ambulance-chasing money-grubbing lawyer persecuting me" bullshit in. "Technically," he says. Sheesh.
posted by Saxon Kane at 12:41 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
I apologize, but this did give me the impetus to look up who truly had the record for being The Most Divorced Man In The World and Musk (remarkably) still has a ways to go.
Wow, that guy sounds like he left a trail of burned bridges in his wake: None of the 28 women he legally married, and only one of his approximately 19 children, attended the funeral service
posted by Dip Flash at 12:42 PM on April 9 [9 favorites]
Wow, that guy sounds like he left a trail of burned bridges in his wake: None of the 28 women he legally married, and only one of his approximately 19 children, attended the funeral service
posted by Dip Flash at 12:42 PM on April 9 [9 favorites]
Trump can't get good legal counsel because he's got a history of non payment. Musk probably could, but you've got to be willing to listen to your experts. Not one of his strong suits.
posted by evilDoug at 12:50 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
posted by evilDoug at 12:50 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
DocumentCloud PDF link to the deposition, for those without the patience for Scribd.
posted by 1xdevnet at 12:55 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
posted by 1xdevnet at 12:55 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
And geez, that deposition is really something:
MR SPIRO: Do you give these lectures in all your depositions?
MR BANKSTON: Yes I do and you can watch them.
It must have been amazing to see in person.
posted by Dip Flash at 12:55 PM on April 9 [12 favorites]
MR SPIRO: Do you give these lectures in all your depositions?
MR BANKSTON: Yes I do and you can watch them.
It must have been amazing to see in person.
posted by Dip Flash at 12:55 PM on April 9 [12 favorites]
but you've got to be willing to listen to your experts. Not one of his strong suits.
Hiring subservient toadies as your legal counsel only seems like a good idea, but it's remarkably attractive to certain people.
posted by tommasz at 12:56 PM on April 9 [2 favorites]
Hiring subservient toadies as your legal counsel only seems like a good idea, but it's remarkably attractive to certain people.
posted by tommasz at 12:56 PM on April 9 [2 favorites]
SBF also disregarded a lot of attorney advice, it appears. How many more of these tech failsons think they're Too Tech To Be Subject To Law?
Zuck is a garbage human on every level, for example, but he does seem to listen to his lawyers!
posted by humbug at 12:57 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
Zuck is a garbage human on every level, for example, but he does seem to listen to his lawyers!
posted by humbug at 12:57 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
I apologize, but this did give me the impetus to look up who truly had the record for being The Most Divorced Man In The World and Musk (remarkably) still has a ways to go.
Whoa, one of that guy's wives was (very briefly) Bonny Lee Bakley, who was later married to Robert Blake (Baretta, the mystery man from Lynch's Lost Highway), and who was murdered in 2001 in unclear circumstances, for which murder Blake was acquitted in criminal court, but then found liable for her wrongful death in civil court. Small and weird world.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 1:04 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
Whoa, one of that guy's wives was (very briefly) Bonny Lee Bakley, who was later married to Robert Blake (Baretta, the mystery man from Lynch's Lost Highway), and who was murdered in 2001 in unclear circumstances, for which murder Blake was acquitted in criminal court, but then found liable for her wrongful death in civil court. Small and weird world.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 1:04 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
…Musk's documented penchant for drugs like ketamineI would love it if Musk's use of an (apparently legitimately needed) medication not continually be brought into focus alongside his actual misdeeds.
posted by WaylandSmith at 1:28 PM on April 9 [7 favorites]
Speaking of Spiro and the NYC government, he's been tapped to defend NYC Mayor Eric Adams on a sexual assault lawsuit, apparently at a discount. Wonder if they're rethinking things after that deposition came out.
posted by NoxAeternum at 1:30 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
posted by NoxAeternum at 1:30 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
Sometimes, when it comes to matters like being properly paranoid about details like whether there's a PO or whether you need to get admitted pro hac before taking a depo, BigLaw training, or the absence thereof, really tells.
Hey now, let's not get all BigLaw vs public interest in here, this is clearly an 'Arrogance of the Manhattan Prosecutor's Office Takes Another Casualty'.
posted by corb at 1:33 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
Hey now, let's not get all BigLaw vs public interest in here, this is clearly an 'Arrogance of the Manhattan Prosecutor's Office Takes Another Casualty'.
posted by corb at 1:33 PM on April 9 [4 favorites]
(apparently legitimately needed) medication
Citation needed.
It’s relevant because Musk himself is super obnoxious about his drug use and vocally and explicitly ties it in to his other bad behavior.
posted by eviemath at 1:37 PM on April 9 [15 favorites]
Citation needed.
It’s relevant because Musk himself is super obnoxious about his drug use and vocally and explicitly ties it in to his other bad behavior.
posted by eviemath at 1:37 PM on April 9 [15 favorites]
Ketamine is known to have valuable qualities that can benefit humanity.
Unlike Elon Musk.
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:43 PM on April 9 [19 favorites]
Unlike Elon Musk.
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:43 PM on April 9 [19 favorites]
Musk's documented penchant for drugs like ketamine
Racist wing-nuttery is not among the listed side effects of ketamine. Musk gives drugs a bad name, not the other way round.
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 1:49 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
Racist wing-nuttery is not among the listed side effects of ketamine. Musk gives drugs a bad name, not the other way round.
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 1:49 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
said it before and will say it again: mr. musk is a waste of perfectly good ketamine
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 1:49 PM on April 9 [24 favorites]
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 1:49 PM on April 9 [24 favorites]
There's one point in the deposition where Musk just starts talking, and Bankston is like wait I haven't asked a question, and Spiro insists that he let Musk talk despite him not actually responding to a question that had been asked. It's astonishing.
posted by joannemerriam at 1:54 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
posted by joannemerriam at 1:54 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
"MR. SPIRO: Okay. Okay. You're just giving speeches that nobody's listening to but you. You're just doing them for yourself.
MR. BANKSTON: Oh, they're for the record. Mr. Spiro, they're for the Court to listen to."
Is it improper for me to send this guy a fan email asking for a friend.
posted by corb at 1:58 PM on April 9 [33 favorites]
MR. BANKSTON: Oh, they're for the record. Mr. Spiro, they're for the Court to listen to."
Is it improper for me to send this guy a fan email asking for a friend.
posted by corb at 1:58 PM on April 9 [33 favorites]
Reading Musk's part of the transcript, it reminds me a lot of some engineering students I knew back in the day who were of above-average intelligence in specific things like math, or where at least knowledageable about them, but who lacked a more general kind of intelligence or knowledge in matters that were outside of their specific worldview. They, like Musk here, tended to react to questions about matters they didn't know about with what they felt where 'clever' gotchas, as if they expected people to say "Zounds, you have defeated me with your wordplay!"
Spoiler: this always failed, as it seems to have failed Musk here.
I suspect Musk has the same issue we're seeing with LLMs: he's superficially competent at certain tasks but fails at a more general intelligence because he lacks a broader range of knowledge as well as an internal framework to assess it.
posted by signal at 1:58 PM on April 9 [12 favorites]
Spoiler: this always failed, as it seems to have failed Musk here.
I suspect Musk has the same issue we're seeing with LLMs: he's superficially competent at certain tasks but fails at a more general intelligence because he lacks a broader range of knowledge as well as an internal framework to assess it.
posted by signal at 1:58 PM on April 9 [12 favorites]
Note to self: Bone up on Rule 199.5 of the Texas Rules and pray to never cross Mr. Bankston.
posted by whuppy at 2:04 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
posted by whuppy at 2:04 PM on April 9 [11 favorites]
I apologize, but this did give me the impetus to look up who truly had the record for being The Most Divorced Man In The World...
And what a hunk of whale hurl he is.
posted by y2karl at 2:05 PM on April 9
And what a hunk of whale hurl he is.
posted by y2karl at 2:05 PM on April 9
Musk has been known to use ketamine recreationally, among other drugs.
posted by BungaDunga at 2:07 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by BungaDunga at 2:07 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
lacked a more general kind of intelligence or knowledge in matters that were outside of their specific worldview.
I feel that it is very much 'engineer's disease', or at the least, the overly-literal viewpoint that some people seem to have where language and law are somehow considered to be fixed rulesets where if you find the right words you can cast that magic spell to get you out of trouble. "Ah ha! I have found a loophole in how words can be interpreted, and thus your rules do not apply."
posted by 1xdevnet at 2:11 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
I feel that it is very much 'engineer's disease', or at the least, the overly-literal viewpoint that some people seem to have where language and law are somehow considered to be fixed rulesets where if you find the right words you can cast that magic spell to get you out of trouble. "Ah ha! I have found a loophole in how words can be interpreted, and thus your rules do not apply."
posted by 1xdevnet at 2:11 PM on April 9 [8 favorites]
→
Can I just say that the cover page of that report has some unnecessarily pretty guilloché work? Really nice.
Shame about the shitbox it's concerning, though
posted by scruss at 2:15 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
DocumentCloud PDF link to the deposition
Can I just say that the cover page of that report has some unnecessarily pretty guilloché work? Really nice.
Shame about the shitbox it's concerning, though
posted by scruss at 2:15 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
If you thought the cover page was nice you should have seen page 2, before the index kicked in. The intricacy of the individual participants' hedcuts? Sublime. You wouldn't see that kind of work in the WSJ, not these days.
posted by 1xdevnet at 2:22 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by 1xdevnet at 2:22 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
BigLaw vs public interest
No offense intended! Having done both, PI doesn't have the time to obsess about details the way Biglaw does. Nothing to do with ability: a simple function of having eight lawyers working 80 hours a week for one or two clients vs. one working 60 hours a week for twenty. If you want someone to be paranoid enough about some point of the local rules to jump out of bed in a cold sweat at 2 a.m. the day before you make an appearance to double-check them, you want a strung-out junior associate at Sullivan & Cromwell or similar.
'Arrogance of the Manhattan Prosecutor's Office Takes Another Casualty'
Working for the prosecuting authority on the criminal side (even sometimes on the civil) sure can make you lazy and careless. You get away with too much, and, if you don't watch it, it'll eat away at your game. Manhattan DA -> your own firm -> Quinn is a bad sequence for learning what the outer limits of your professional conduct can, much less should, be. Especially if your job at Quinn depends on your having a clown client who likes watching other people beclown themselves.
posted by praemunire at 2:22 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
No offense intended! Having done both, PI doesn't have the time to obsess about details the way Biglaw does. Nothing to do with ability: a simple function of having eight lawyers working 80 hours a week for one or two clients vs. one working 60 hours a week for twenty. If you want someone to be paranoid enough about some point of the local rules to jump out of bed in a cold sweat at 2 a.m. the day before you make an appearance to double-check them, you want a strung-out junior associate at Sullivan & Cromwell or similar.
'Arrogance of the Manhattan Prosecutor's Office Takes Another Casualty'
Working for the prosecuting authority on the criminal side (even sometimes on the civil) sure can make you lazy and careless. You get away with too much, and, if you don't watch it, it'll eat away at your game. Manhattan DA -> your own firm -> Quinn is a bad sequence for learning what the outer limits of your professional conduct can, much less should, be. Especially if your job at Quinn depends on your having a clown client who likes watching other people beclown themselves.
posted by praemunire at 2:22 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
For someone who is big on Texas, you'd think Musk would actually hire an attorney that's admitted to practice in that state.
Howdy pardner, I’m the sheriff of fail.
posted by Artw at 2:25 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
Howdy pardner, I’m the sheriff of fail.
posted by Artw at 2:25 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
I am against ascribing engineers disease to someone who has never been an engineer. He’s just a rich know-it-all asshole who is dumb as bricks.
posted by Artw at 2:27 PM on April 9 [27 favorites]
posted by Artw at 2:27 PM on April 9 [27 favorites]
needs more gummy worms
Quinn is a fairly elite firm by LA standards, whether or not it's 'white shoe.'
posted by snuffleupagus at 2:29 PM on April 9
Quinn is a fairly elite firm by LA standards, whether or not it's 'white shoe.'
posted by snuffleupagus at 2:29 PM on April 9
Howdy pardner, I’m the sheriff of fail.
I stand by my assessment of "Wish.com Lee Van Cleef".
And the thing is, Musk does have Texas counsel - they did the filing on the discovery order. I just imagine they thought Bankston was a legal lightweight like Wood, and found out the hard way that he's not.
posted by NoxAeternum at 2:36 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
I stand by my assessment of "Wish.com Lee Van Cleef".
And the thing is, Musk does have Texas counsel - they did the filing on the discovery order. I just imagine they thought Bankston was a legal lightweight like Wood, and found out the hard way that he's not.
posted by NoxAeternum at 2:36 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
> I am against ascribing engineers disease to someone who has never been an engineer. He’s just a rich know-it-all asshole who is dumb as bricks.Pretty sure Melon Husk is currently dumber than most bricks.
posted by Fiberoptic Zebroid and The Hypnagogic Jerks at 2:37 PM on April 9 [2 favorites]
I had a feeling this would pop up here. If you listened to enough Knowledge Fight you don't need video. You would know exactly how Bankston would sound at different points. And I'm pretty sure Elon and Alex Jones had already started interacting with each other before this deposition happened. You'd think Alex would have at least warned him. It wasn't a secret that Mark was working on this case, he announced it on X.
posted by LostInUbe at 2:57 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
posted by LostInUbe at 2:57 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
People are attacked all the time in the media, online media, social media, but it is rare that that actually has a meaningful negative impact on their life.
Wow. I'm pretty sure Musk doesn't actually believe this, or at least, he's inclined to believe it or not as the needs of the moment suit his ego. He sure felt like saying it here though.
posted by traveler_ at 3:05 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
Wow. I'm pretty sure Musk doesn't actually believe this, or at least, he's inclined to believe it or not as the needs of the moment suit his ego. He sure felt like saying it here though.
posted by traveler_ at 3:05 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
A. -- this is just a kitten with a tin foil hat.
posted by bendy at 3:12 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by bendy at 3:12 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
Engineer’s Disease: it’s not just for Engineers anymore!
I mean, I’ve been treated for tennis elbow; you think I would have gotten to play some tennis….
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:15 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
I mean, I’ve been treated for tennis elbow; you think I would have gotten to play some tennis….
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:15 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
“Mr Musk, there’s not a question posed to you right now.” should be a recurring quote.
posted by supercres at 3:30 PM on April 9
posted by supercres at 3:30 PM on April 9
I think Trump, Alex and Elon are of the "all lawyers are opportunistic ambulance chasers, including my own" school which is why they are disinclined to listen to them or even care that they have specialties and are not one size fits all.
posted by LostInUbe at 3:37 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
posted by LostInUbe at 3:37 PM on April 9 [5 favorites]
A. "I mean, it may make sense --"
MR. BANKSTON: "Mr. Musk, this is aWendy's deposition."
MR. SPIRO: "Objection; non-responsive."
MR. BANKSTON: "Oh now you remember rule 199.5."
posted by 1xdevnet at 3:40 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
MR. BANKSTON: "Mr. Musk, this is a
MR. SPIRO: "Objection; non-responsive."
MR. BANKSTON: "Oh now you remember rule 199.5."
posted by 1xdevnet at 3:40 PM on April 9 [3 favorites]
That transcript is hard to read. I would have loved to watch that whole shitshow unfold, though. Better than anything on Netflix.
posted by dg at 4:04 PM on April 9
posted by dg at 4:04 PM on April 9
Musk seems to have made the mistake of hiring council who he doesn’t want to listen to, is unqualified, or worse simply does what he says without regard for the actual law, the consequences, to pending litigation, or their own law license.
posted by interogative mood at 4:09 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by interogative mood at 4:09 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
I'd be curious to see if Elon does pay his lawyers since I heard he stopped paying rent on Twitter HQ, stiffed people of their promised severance, etc.
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:26 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:26 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
Lawyers at this level customarily get retainers, so they are effectively paid in advance (albeit in tranches). Another, and frankly probably the most important, reason Trump has trouble finding good counsel. It's one thing to be fascist, it's quite another to default on payments!
posted by praemunire at 5:05 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by praemunire at 5:05 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
As much as I dislike Musk and like Bankston, Spiro's performance here wasn't really that bad. Not getting the pro hac admission sorted ahead of time is a bad look; and so is not knowing the Texas shorthand—but the procedure isn't very different than other jurisdictions, what Spiro did is typical defense counsel stuff, and to a certain extent what Musk is paying for.
Rule 199.5 notwithstanding, Texas depositions can famously get much friskier.
posted by snuffleupagus at 5:38 PM on April 9
Rule 199.5 notwithstanding, Texas depositions can famously get much friskier.
posted by snuffleupagus at 5:38 PM on April 9
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This is your brain on drugs.
Any questions?”
posted by armoir from antproof case at 11:31 AM on April 9 [1 favorite]