Tesla's Top Attorney Calls It Quits After 2 Months, Says Not The Right Cultural Fit

Tesla Inc TSLA’s five-year general counsel stepped down this December after a high-pressure year of government scrutiny and class action lawsuits.

Now, two months later, his replacement has already had enough.

What Happened

Dane Butswinkas decided Tesla wasn’t the right cultural fit, according to the Wall Street Journal. He will return to his firm, Williams & Connolly, and continue providing Tesla outside counsel.

Tesla has named insider Jonathan Chang its new head lawyer. Chang is an eight-year veteran of Tesla and rises to leadership from vice president of legal. His experience with Tesla includes the purchase of SolarCity Corp. and the fight against franchise auto dealers blocking the manufacturer’s direct-to-consumer sales.

Why It’s Important

Butswinkas’ resignation extends a growing list of executive departures. More than 50 senior employees have quit in the last two years, including most recently Tesla’s two-time CFO.

With only two months under his belt, Butswinkas doesn’t even boast the shortest tenure. Tesla’s chief accounting officer left in September after a few weeks on the job.

The news also comes less than one day after Musk sent some confusing tweets about vehicle production:

Meant to say annualized production rate at end of 2019 probably around 500k, ie 10k cars/week. Deliveries for year still estimated to be about 400k.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 20, 2019

The transition timeline is yet unclear.

Tesla’s stock traded down 2 percent to $299.53 on the news.

Related Links:

Electric Vehicle Startup Rivian Raises $700 Million In Amazon-Led Investment Round

Tesla's Stock Receives 'Buy' Upgrade On European Opportunity, EV Penetration