Tesla and CEO Elon Musk are pushing back after a Delaware judge with connections to President Joe Biden ordered the company to pay $345 million in legal fees in a shareholder lawsuit. The decision equates to roughly $18,000 per hour for the plaintiff’s attorneys and has sparked outrage over judicial overreach.

The lawsuit centered on a compensation package approved by 77% of Tesla shareholders in June 2024. Shareholders had overwhelmingly supported Musk’s compensation plan twice, yet Delaware Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick ruled that the votes were invalid because shareholders supposedly lacked sufficient information and Tesla’s board was allegedly not independent enough.

In addition to overturning the shareholder-approved compensation, McCormick awarded the staggering legal fees to the plaintiffs. Justifying the decision, McCormick stated that the plaintiff’s lawyers faced “some of the best law firms in the country” and therefore deserved the extraordinary payout.

Tesla announced plans to appeal the ruling, calling it a direct attack on shareholder rights. “A Delaware judge just overturned a supermajority of shareholders who own Tesla and who voted twice to pay @elonmusk what he’s worth,” Tesla wrote in a post on X. “This ruling, if not overturned, means that judges and plaintiffs’ lawyers run Delaware companies rather than their rightful owners — the shareholders.”

The controversy deepens with McCormick’s political ties. Before her judicial appointment in 2021, McCormick worked for Young Conaway, a firm that donated $55,000 to Biden’s campaign during the 2008 primaries. Additionally, emails from Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop suggested connections between Biden’s inner circle and the Delaware Chancery Court.

The decision comes as Musk faces increased scrutiny from the Biden administration. Musk has been targeted by Biden’s Department of Justice and Federal Communications Commission, which has taken steps to challenge his companies, including SpaceX’s Starlink. Critics view the court’s ruling as part of a broader campaign against Musk, one of the most prominent figures opposing the current administration’s policies.