A federal judge in Texas, assigned to hear a lawsuit filed by Elon Musk’s social media platform X against a group of advertisers, has removed himself from the case after reports revealed his ownership of shares in another Musk company, Tesla.
U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Fort Worth, Texas, recused himself in a one-paragraph filing on Tuesday without providing a reason.
The lawsuit, which X filed last week, accuses the World Federation of Advertisers and others of conspiring to boycott the platform, leading to revenue loss. The federation has neither responded in court nor commented on the matter.
O’Connor’s office and representatives from X did not immediately respond to requests for comment. NPR reported on Friday that O’Connor owned shares in Tesla, raising concerns about his ability to oversee litigation involving Musk’s companies. A judicial financial disclosure report from 2022, the most recent available, showed that O’Connor held between $15,001 and $50,000 in Tesla stock. Judges sometimes recuse themselves from cases when they have a financial interest in one of the parties involved.
O’Connor is also presiding over another lawsuit X filed last year, accusing media watchdog Media Matters of interfering with its relationships with advertisers, a claim Media Matters has denied.
Musk’s case against the World Federation of Advertisers was initially filed in the Northern District of Texas and assigned to O’Connor, who was appointed by Republican President George W. Bush.
The Northern District of Texas has become a favored venue for conservatives seeking to challenge policies of the Democratic Biden administration. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade in Dallas was assigned to hear X’s advertising boycott case.
