They also raised the "unclean hands" argument I mentioned in previous comments:
Judgment as a Matter of Law – #149 in Vernon Unsworth v. Elon Musk (C.D. Cal., 2:18-cv-08048) – CourtListener.com
Based on the evidence, no reasonable juror could conclude that Mr. Unsworth did not have unclean hands with regard to the Twitter posts that form the basis of this defamation action. Mr. Musk’s tweets were a direct response to Mr. Unsworth’s unprovoked attack on CNN. (12/03/19 Tr. 72:8-11 (Musk).)
Mr. Unsworth’s gratuitous statements that Mr. Musk’s rescue submarine was a PR stunt, which insinuated that Mr. Musk did not care about the trapped Thai children, and that Mr. Musk should stick his submarine where it hurts, therefore “occurred in the same transaction that forms the subject of this litigation,” which“is enough to trigger application of the unclean hands doctrine.” Unilogic, Inc. v. Burroughs Corp., 10 Cal App. 4th 612, 623 (1992). And Mr. Unsworth’s comments were unfair and inequitable. See, e.g., Kendall-Jackson Winery, 76 Cal. App. 4th 970, 979 (1999) (“Not every wrongful act constitutes unclean hands. But, the misconduct need not be a crime or an actionable tort. Any conduct that violates conscience, or good faith, or other equitable standards of conduct is sufficient cause to invoke the doctrine.”).
Because unclean hands bars Mr. Unsworth’s defamation claim, judgment should be granted in favor of Mr. Musk as a matter of law.
Note that even if the judge rejects or ignores this motion, (to me) these look like a powerful argument on appeal: if the judge should have dismissed the lawsuit due to unclean hands then regardless of how the jury decides any decision against Elon would be reversed.
