Tesla names renowned DC litigator as general counsel

Embattled electric automaker Tesla Inc. has named Dane H. Butswinkas, chair of Williams & Connolly LLP, as general counsel.

Butswinkas will replace Todd A. Maron, Tesla’s legal head for the past five years, while remaining at Williams & Connolly.

The Palo Alto-based company, co-founded by serial entrepreneur Elon Musk, is hiring the top Washington, D.C. litigator amid legal turmoil this year ranging from securities fraud charges to a racial discrimination lawsuit.

Williams & Connolly congratulated Butswinkas in a statement issued late last week, calling him “a tremendous asset to Tesla and its leadership.”

The firm added Butswinkas will remain partner while Joseph G. Petrosinelli takes over as chair upon Butswinkas’ departure for Tesla. It noted Gerson A. Zweifach, who is senior executive vice president, group general counsel and chief compliance officer at 21st Century Fox, has stayed on at Williams & Connolly as senior counsel.

Zweifach plans to rejoin Williams & Connolly as partner in 2019, according to the firm’s statement, after the completion of The Walt Disney Co.’s $52.4 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox.

“After 30 years as a trial lawyer at Williams & Connolly, I would have never imagined joining a company in-house,” Butswinkas said in a statement. “But Tesla presents a unique and inspiring opportunity. Tesla’s mission is bigger than Tesla — one that is critical to the future of our planet. It’s hard to identify a mission more timely, more essential, or more worth fighting for.”

Alex Romain of Hueston Hennigan LLP in Los Angeles spent 17 years at Williams & Connolly in D.C. and witnessed Butswinkas’ leadership while working alongside him on cases and firm administration matters.

“He’s one of the most gifted and brilliant trial lawyers that I have ever known,” Romain said. “He has extraordinary talent and works incredibly hard. He really fits with Williams & Connolly and embodies what it means to practice the way a law firm practices, which is at the very highest level of practice.

“In terms of what I expect he will bring, I expect he will bring an extraordinary sense of judgment, that he will have great vision and that he will have the management skills to execute that vision,” Romain added.

Maron, who had been general counsel since 2014 after starting at Tesla as deputy general counsel the prior year, did not give a reason for his departure in the statement though it said the company had been preparing for the transition since July. Maron will stay until January.

“Being part of Tesla for the last five years has been the highlight of my career,” Maron said in the statement. “Tesla has been like family to me, and I am extremely grateful to Elon, the board, the executive team, and everyone at Tesla for allowing me to play a part in this incredible company.”

Maron handled Musk’s two divorces while at Beverly Hills family law firm Jaffe and Clemens before joining Tesla.

Tesla is still on a legal rollercoaster from litigation that reached a fever pitch over the last six months, stemming largely from Musk’s social media behavior.

The Securities and Exchange Commission settled in late September with Musk on a fraud charge sparked by an Aug. 7 tweet Musk wrote about taking Tesla private at $420 per share, a larger premium than its trading price. He added in the tweet that funding for the transaction was secured with the decision relying on a shareholder vote.

The SEC claimed Musk knew the transaction was uncertain and failed to explain it fully to stakeholders via Twitter. Tesla’s stock price jumped 6 percent the same day. U.S. SEC v. Musk, 18-CV8865 (S.D. N.Y., filed Sept. 27, 2018); U.S. SEC v. Tesla Inc., 18-CV8947 (S.D. N.Y., filed Sept. 29, 2018).

A week after the tweet, Tesla shareholders filed a lawsuit in California federal court against the company and Musk over the manipulated stock jump. Isaacs v. Musk, 18-CV04865-EMC (N.D. Cal., filed Aug. 10, 2018).

The SEC settlement led to Musk’s removal as chairman while he and Tesla were ordered to pay $20 million each in penalties. An independent chairman had to be appointed, per the settlement, as well as independent directors to the board and a new committee.

The Department of Justice also requested documents from Tesla over the tweet, the company claimed in September. The DOJ and SEC at the time declined to comment on the existence of the probe.

In another Northern District case, a class won a $5.4 million settlement last month against Tesla over allegations of delivering cars that lacked standard safety and Enhanced Autopilot features. Sheikh v. Tesla, Inc., 17-CV02193 (N.D. Cal., filed Apr. 19, 2017).

Tesla is currently being sued by a former African-American contractor who claimed a job offer was rescinded after he complained about the alleged racism perpetuated by factory managers. The company lost its motion to compel arbitration in June. Vaughn v. Tesla, Inc., RG17882082 (Alameda Super. Ct., filed Nov. 13, 2017).

Musk did not release a separate statement about Butswinkas’ hiring, but he did retweet Tesla’s post announcing the news on Thursday night.