Family Law

Will Divorce Kill the Electric Car?

By ckramer

A high-profile divorce could impact a major producer of electric cars, according to an article from Reuters.

The article outlines the divorce requests made by Justine Musk. Musk is splitting from Elon Musk, the co-founder and largest shareholder of Tesla Motors, a car start-up that offers high-performance roadsters powered only by electricity.

The demands that she is making could change the shareholder balance of the company, and it could get Justine a fine electric automobile.

In her divorce demands, Justine is asking for around $6 million, 10 percent of Elon?s stake in the company, and a Tesla Roadster costing over $100,000. She is also asking for a 5 percent stake in Elon?s space exploration company, SpaceX, and child support for their five children.

Justine threw a curveball into the mix when she began blogging openly about her divorce demands. ?I really, really want one,? she said of the Roadster in a blog post. The Tesla Roadster accelerates more quickly than a Ferrari, and has a range of 300 miles before it needs another charge.

Justine, who is an author who pens supernatural thrillers with titles including ?Blood Angel? and ?Uninvited,? titled a post on her blog ?Golddigger,? presumably as a joke, and offered some of her thoughts on her situation, the divorce and her demands. ?Is this what I deserve?? she wrote candidly in a May 8 missive. ?I don?t know. Who exactly deserves that kind of wealth? But based on our life and history together, is that reasonable? I think so.?

If Justine were to be rewarded what she is requesting, it could have ramifications for Tesla operations. Elon had been planning to take the company public, and to keep $465 million in funding from the U.S. government to create a mass-market electric car model, the Model S.

If Justine were to receive some of Elon?s 81 million shares of Tesla stock, it could put his retention of the government loan in jeopardy. Tesla?s regulatory filing with the government stipulates that he own a particular number of shares or it could go into default.

According to Tesla spokesman Ricardo Reyes, they have no plans to alter their existing filing with the government.

In an earlier blog post, Justine stated that she would be willing to discuss a settlement with her estranged husband if he was willing to do the same. ?Here’s hoping for a fair and amicable conclusion,? she wrote.

Justine has won an early stage of the divorce dispute, but it has been passed along to an appeals court, and could be the beginning of an extended dispute process. An issue arose over an agreement signed just after the two were married, and whether that agreement is determined as valid or not. If it is not valid, then Justine would be eligible for half of the couple?s community property.

As for her blog, Justine continues to offer her thoughts. ?I am now,? she posted recently, ?that woman in a ?messy and publicized? divorce. That is not something that you plan or expect to become.?

Full post as published by The Divorce Blog on May 24, 2010 (boomark / email).