Refusing the settlement was stupid. Not only is he likely to lose, almost any defense will rely on him showing he didn't understand the words "funding secured" which will then open Tesla up to shareholder lawsuits.

If you're blind to this whole story, I suppose you could believe that. Who was the "potential buyer"? We heard VW and the Saudi fund, both who said it was nonsense.

Beyond that, according to the complaint, nothing was discussed with the board and there was no possibility that small shareholders could remain (or institutional investors for that matter) if Tesla went private. There was no discussed price. Musk wanted to "burn the shorts"; he was trying to do so for months. Whoops.

And have you considered that this is only just beginning? I mean, it's not impossible that this blows over, but it's also possible -- with a DOJ investigation ongoing-- that this whole thing implodes. The world is tiring of the games Silicon Valley plays.