I have long been a critic of Judge Kathaleen McCormick of Delaware over her absurd rulings against Elon Musk and his compensation package at Tesla. In my view, her rejection of the decision of shareholders to approve a generous compensation package reflected a deep bias against the billionaire. Now, McCormick is in hot water after “liking” a story about Musk losing a major case in California. McCormick’s LinkedIn message has prompted Musk’s team to demand that she recuse herself from any future proceedings involving Musk.
McCormick drew criticism from some of us for her refusal to accept the shareholders’ decision on Musk’s compensation. In blocking the compensation, she essentially claimed to be protecting shareholders from themselves. She ignored successive votes in a ruling that seemed tailored to Musk — and McCormick’s dislike for him.
Now, 15 months later, McCormick was found to have reacted to a LinkedIn post on the California case. A jury consultant in the federal case posted a taunting message after the $2 billion verdict, reading “Sorry, Elon. Sorry, Quinn Emanuel. Thanks $2 billion for your help in this trial. It was a pleasure working against you.”
LinkedIn allows users to simply “like” a posting or really like a story by hitting the “support” button. “Support” depicts a heart cradled in an outstretched hand and is considered a stronger expression of support.
The selection of the “support” option resulted in the posting of the image and the phrase “Katie McCormick supports this” floating above the original post.
After the outcry, McCormick insisted that she may never have hit the support button at all: “I either did not click the ‘support’ icon at all, or I did so accidentally. I do not believe that I did it accidentally.”
If she hit the button, she would not be the first judge to be undone by social media. The problem is that, given her earlier rulings against Musk, it is entirely believable.
Judicial ethics rules are struggling to keep up with such controversies and currently remain fairly vague. While judges are admonished not to use their titles in social media postings, the advice remains commonsensical. ABA Standing Comm. on Ethics & Prof. Responsibility, Formal Op. 462 simply warns judges to assume that things posted to a social media site will not remain within the judge’s social circle.
Social media is an obvious danger for judges, including liking posts by lawyers who are or will appear before them. Obviously, political postings (or likes of such postings) raise additional questions about their lack of neutrality.
Indiana warns its judges that “Even the most considerate judge who has taken steps to minimize conflicts and other ethical issues when using social networking sites should be prepared to deal with unexpected issues that may arise.”
Ironically, it is not Judge McCormick’s social postings but her judicial postings that raise the greatest questions over her judgment and independence on matters related to Elon Musk.
It is past time for the Autopen Appointed judges to be stripped of their robes and banished from courthouses.
An appointment by Autopen is an appointment by Forgery: invalid from the beginning.
Then maybe we will have fewer decisions like this.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/03/biden-judge-blocks-trump-forcing-pentagon-every-federal
Judges are supposed to remain neutral and rule on the law and constitution. They shouldn’t be cheerleaders for one side or the other.
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LOL…. What judges are “supposed” to be and do/not do, and what they actually are and do/not do, is laughable. This is especially true at the state level where there are more judges, and 99% are political “appointees” (who are then “re-elected”, in uncontested elections/races). The judges who play it straight, and down the middle, in Article III Federal Courts are a rarity, and basically non-existent in State Courts. And this is true at the trial court level, the appellate review level, and last, the Supreme Court review level (both SCOTUS at Federal Courts and Supreme Courts of the various states at the state level).
Judges are supposed to remain neutral and rule on the law and constitution. They shouldn’t be cheerleaders for one side or the other.
The left is now fully nihilist. That is, the left rejects any facts which clash with their ideology and all human values, honesty, competence, integrity, excellence, beauty, love, etc., as such. Since judicial impartiality (JI) is a legal and therefore human value, the left doesn’t bother it. As a leftist judge, Kathleen McCormick, although she will probably not admit it publicly, sees no point in, and will not bother with, JI. Hopefully she will be removed from Mr. Musk’s case promptly by those who recognize and value JI.
With her bizarre original decisions against Musk she may have killed the goose that lays the golden eggs for Delaware.
It’s reputation for a sophisticated and fair corporate judiciary has been damaged and some major corporations have already fled. I imagine, others are considering it.
That this may be a rare crackpot judge in the system is understandable; particularly with what some law schools are doing to legal theory. What is difficult to understand is why the rest of the state isn’t doing all it can to cure the damage and relegate this loon to swim in smaller and safer pools.
If she does not recuse herself [or is recused] in the present matter despite compelling evidence that she cannot be fair and follow the law, the reputation of Delaware as a haven for corporations will be further damaged. Musk likely will see to it, deservedly.
Frankly, I wouldn’t mind seeing the state that gave us Biden become impoverished because of its manifest stupidity..
Here’s a simple solution for judges, lawyers, physicians, and others held in high trust by the public: stay off, or simply don’t post to, social media, or at least have enough brains to do so anonymously. That some individuals can’t help themselves to not also include their title speaks volumes about their personalities, likely narcissistic ones.
You finally figured out that it has been the counterintuitive, antithetical, degraded, and partial judicial branch that wittingly “interpreted” the manifestly right-wing conservative by design and intent Constitution of the American Founders into the far-left Communist Manifesto of Karl Marx.
Judge: “I pointed my mouse pointer at the support button, and the mouse went off… I mean clicked!”
A likely story
Such an excuse is for grade school, not for a judge. Though not possible, that type of response should lead to removal.
I agree with Judge McCormick, to wit: “I do not believe that I did it accidentally.”
Having previously ruled against Musk’s interests, and now having taken it upon herself to post a social media comment publicly professing a personal bias against him, it continues to remain clear that there is a pressing need for a vaccine to prevent ‘stupidity’ to be developed and administered to the nation’s judiciary.
If it seems appropriate to remove this partisan judge from the bench, then why not Justice jackson for being in a Broadway play that pushes the LGBTQ+ agenda or wearing suggestive message pins on her judicial robes? I have no more confidence that jackson will be impartial when it comes to judging any case before her which deals with LGBT+ issues than I would trust the judge mentioned by Turley to not be motivated by activism and personal animosity. It appears that women, for the most part, allow their emotional responses to guide their actions; especially when they are in positions of authority or power, they tend to lead with their emotions rather than logic. It is the same with their votes, they succumb to the indoctrination message of “being kind” etc rather than contemplating how their knee-jerk emotional response will affect the nation in the long run. I present the push for the Great Society legislation that might never have manifested itself except that women had been given the vote. Just take Eleanor Roosevelt as a prime example; her do-gooder frame of mind help set this nation on its current path of socialism because it was presented as “the kind thing to do”.
Brown-Jackson is one of nine judges making the decision, therefore Brown-Jackson is irrelevant except for her ridiculous decisions on the rulings. McCormick is the only judge making the decision in the Delaware courts for businesses, thus having a more profound effect.
Everybody all ready knew this Black Robe Wanna Be Illuminati was a deeply biased GIVER OF JUSTICE – her way! Even the Lady Jurists can be SCUMBAGS!
I am tired of these activist liberal judges.
JEALOUS BI>CH!
No surprises, there.
Fascist Democrats have imposed two systems of justice in America, and they celebrate it. They cheer when judges act as hyper-partisan hacks, whether it is McCormick or Engoron or Merchan or Boasberg. One after another after another, Democrat judges reveal that, under their robes, they are wearing party uniforms. It was Justice Sotomayor who told us that she would not make the same rulings as an old, white male justice. That thought should be frightening in a system that guarantees blindfolded, objective justice.
“That thought should be frightening in a system that [purports to guarantee] blindfolded, objective justice.”
Fixed it for you.
It was Justice Sotomayor who told us that she would not make the same rulings as an old, white male justice. That thought should be frightening in a system that guarantees blindfolded, objective justice.
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I was worried about Sotomayor, but my worry was because she was an ex prosecuting attorney. I feared she would rubber stamp anything LE/Gov put in front of her. I was as wrong as one can get. Sotomayor has been very very impressive IMO. She is not a political hack or blind partisan, even though many will make that claim. Neil Gorsuch is another one that really has impressed me, by the way he will break from the conservative pack and vote his mind and conscience. He reminds me in many respects of Sotomayor, but from the other side. Thomas, and now Alito, you can dial their vote in a month before oral arguments. Same with Kagan… Brown? I am not so sure I am in disagreement with her, or her SCOTUS rulings, not enough time to fully reflect, but she is cutting a path, right or wrong, she is trying.
Republicans are fair
Democrats are fascists
Republicans are fascists, Democrats are fair. Fixed it.
At least post your name chicken sh__. Fixed it for you!
I do not understand the absolute hate some people have for Elon Musk. Yes he was born rich but if you look at the companies he helped start he has had an uncanny ability to recognize great investment opportunities. From Pay Pal, Tesla and Space X he has helped start some of the most successful startups in recent history.
I hope he continues this streak as he has created thousands upon thousands of jobs. The United States needs people like Musk badly. Not to mention how he has helped my retirement account.
I believe it started when he bought Twitter and removed the censorship that the Democratic party liked and even demanded. Then it got worse when he endorsed Trump and did DOGE to find and cut waste. Another way of looking at it is that he eliminated their safe spaces both socially and at work.
Just to be clear. Musk’s family was relatively successful upper middle class, but not really “rich “ in any meaningful sense. The financial support he received in starting his first business was minimal and it’s fair to say he is a self-made billionaire.
Ms. McCormick is no judge. She is a partisan hack whose radical animus in prior rulings against Tesla’s compensation packages for Musk have nuked Delaware’s one-time national leadership in business incorporations. Her Musk rulings have driven scores of major US corporations out of Delaware at inestimable costs to Delaware taxpayers like me as Texas, Nevada and any number of other states promise Corporate America that their jurists will follow the law, not raw, vicious partisanship, when overseeing legal issues involving corporate America. Who out there will tell us how many millions or tens of millions of dollars Ms. McCormick has cost Delawareans because, in her utter contempt for the bench, the rule of law and her own office itself as she pursued political scalps with a singular malevolence. In vaporizing innumerable Delaware incorporations, all associated fees, all associated employment, and indirect employment, with unending ripples across our state economy. Ms. McCormick is no judge. She’s nothing but a radical partisan hack whose blind bias has cost Elon Musk far less than it has cost tens of thousands of Delawareans no longer employed because her bias and her ego rule from the bench.
Anonymous 7:47AM-well said and quite succinct. I was getting ready to write my own comment but saw yours and decided I had nothing else to add since yours was so good. The term Pyrrhic Victory crosses my mind when thinking about her ruling.
Much more of this and people will wonder why Delaware is still considered a state and not just a suburb of Philadelphia.
Was that an atta boy? Why thank you.
Pyrrhic victory, thanks GEB. A hollow victory- I nearly always learn something from you. ☺
Sincerely, A. Human