Elon Musk and Mark Cuban, two names not often connected to the Seventh Amendment, filed a joint amicus brief at the Supreme Court challenging the legitimacy of in-house trials at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Supreme Court is slated to consider a case in late November that raises constitutional questions over the use of in-house judges handling cases brought by the commission in a case known as SEC v. Jarkesy. Plaintiff George Jarkesy contends the SEC's internal, juryless adjudication process by commission-appointed administrative law judge effectively amounts to trial by the judge, jury, and executioner in violation of his Seventh Amendment rights.

DISTRICT OF CRIME: WHAT HAPPENED TO WASHINGTON'S SHRINKING POLICE FORCE?

Attorneys for Musk and Cuban filed their joint amicus brief on Wednesday expressing support for Jarkesy, arguing the "administrative proceedings—as they are currently structured—results in unequal results for SEC defendants."

The filing comes as the Twitter-turned-X CEO is facing his third major lawsuit by the financial regulator after he was sued in 2018 and again in 2019. This time, the agency is asking a federal court to force Musk's testimony in an investigation related to his acquisition of Twitter and public disclosures he made in connection with the deal, according to court filings.

Page 10 of the billionaires' brief points to an apparent trend between 2013 and 2014, where the regulator began handling more cases outside of federal courts and in house because the "SEC suffered a series of jury trial losses in insider trading cases."

Justices on Nov. 29 will hear the Biden administration's appeal that argues a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in favor of Jarkesy will have "massive" consequences across the federal government if it's not reversed. The appeals court found in May 2022 that his Seventh Amendment rights to a jury trial were violated, one month after the commission also admitted in April 2022 that SEC personnel improperly accessed files in dozens of cases, including Jarkesy's matter.

"The SEC recently admitted that its enforcement personnel had improper access to privileged memoranda meant to be accessible to the Commissioners but inaccessible to enforcement staff in administrative proceedings," Musk and Cuban's brief added.

Notably, the SEC introduced new cybersecurity risk management regulations on July 26 that require public companies to disclose "material" data breaches within four days despite admitting that its own so-called control deficiency that led to improper file sharing was discovered in 2021 but first reported in April 2022.

Justice Department Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar contends the 5th Circuit "erred in holding that Congress violated the Seventh Amendment by authorizing the SEC to bring administrative proceedings seeking civil penalties" and that the Supreme Court should reverse course.

Musk and Cuban are calling on the justices to uphold the 5th Circuit's ruling and "reverse its order of remand to the Commission."

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

"The SEC’s insistence on administrative proceedings when federal court juries are readily available runs contrary to the SEC’s mission and harms the very investors and markets the SEC is charged with protecting," lawyers for the billionaires added.

In addition to Musk and Cuban, the brief was joined by Phillip Goldstein, Nelson Obus, Manouch Moshayedi, and Investor Choice Advocates Network.