Elon Musk is asking a court not to take his Twitter activity so seriously just as his company's board of directors is entering a court order to "oversee" the eccentric Tesla' chief's public communications.

In the US District Court in Los Angeles, Mr. Musk's attorneys asked a judge to dismiss the defamation suit brought by British diver Vernon Unsworth, who helped rescue the soccer team trapped in a Thailand cave.  Musk repeatedly alleged that Unsworth was a "pedo guy", apparent retaliation for suggesting that Musk was in the way and seeking publicity when he showed up at the rescue with a mini-submarine that ultimately was not used.

Unsworth sued claiming defamation.  Musk's defense is that it was just a "schoolyard spat on social media" and "the public knew from the outset that Musk's insults were not intended to be statements of fact".  Unsworth's team is urging the judge to reject Musk's defense because it would "effectively doom all lawsuits" over defamation, claiming defense is "novel but inaccurate".

It's not clear how the judge will rule, but it's not the first time that Musk's twitter habits got him and the company into trouble.

As of Friday in the US, the Tesla board of directors is under a court order to "oversee" Musk's public communications, including his Twitter feed.  This is part of the settlement of charges brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over Musk's abortive tweet in September about taking the company private.  The announcement - improvised, and unaccompanied by any of the legally required paperwork - caused share prices to skyrocket and prompted the SEC to open an investigation into possible stock price manipulation.  

As for the rest of the settlement:  Musk and Tesla agreed to pay a combined US$40 Million, and Musk will vacate the role of chairman for three years while remaining the company's chief executive.