Major Win for Elon Musk in $258 Billion Dogecoin Market Manipulation Lawsuit

The major lawsuit against the future leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E) will end soon, at least according to the most recent filings by both sides’ lawyers.

Those representing the investors who sought a $258 billion payout withdrew their appeal from an earlier ruling by Judge Hellerstein, who sided with Tesla’s CEO in August 2024.

Recall that the lawsuit was initiated in July 2022 after the conclusion of the 2021 bull market. It alleged Musk of illegally interfering with DOGE’s price, especially during an appearance on NBC’s Saturday Night Live where he praised the asset, but also via his many tweets on the matter.

Most of those interactions resulted in immediate price increases for the OG meme coin, including tapping an all-time high of over $0.73 before the SNL show.

Plaintiff Keith Johnson filed the federal lawsuit in Lower Manhattan, requesting $86 billion in damages from Tesla’s chief exec, and also $172 billion for losses incurred on DOGE trades since 2019.

Musk won a dismissal of the market manipulation case in late August this year, which the plaintiff’s lawyers appealed. However, they have withdrawn that appeal, according to a Thursday filing reported by Reuters earlier today.

In response, Musk and Tesla withdrew their motion to sanction the investors’ lawyers for pursuing a “frivolous” case to “extort a quick handout.”

US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein will have to approve both requests now before the case is officially concluded.

Dogecoin’s price skyrocketed after Donald Trump’s win in the 2024 US presidential elections, perhaps due to the aforementioned relationship between the meme coin and the future D.O.G.E leader. It more than doubled its valuation within a month and soared to $0.44. However, it has lost traction since then and is down to $0.36 as of writing these lines.