Billionaire Elon Musk’s social media business X is poised for another High Court clash with Coimisiún na Meán after launching legal challenges to decisions taken by the Irish regulator this week.
X, formerly known as Twitter, has taken several High Court cases in recent months against the commission, which is responsible for regulating the social media giant’s EU activities.
Court filings lodged days ago show that X Internet Unlimited Company is seeking judicial reviews of four decisions by the commission.
The challenges “most likely” relate to adjudications made by the regulator on complaints against X, according to a source familiar with the industry.
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Coimisiún na Meán regulates X’s activities throughout the EU as the multinational’s European business is headquartered in the Republic.
The organisation regularly deals with complaints on a wide range of issues originating in the Republic and other EU states, whose authorities refer them to the Irish commission.
[ X accuses Coimisiún na Meán of ‘kicking the can down the road’Opens in new window ]
Judicial reviews generally involve plaintiffs asking a High Court judge to scrutinise decisions by lower courts or public bodies and can result in getting those rulings overturned.
X lodged the papers initiating the High Court challenges this week. The court has yet to set a date to hear the cases.
Coimisiún na Meán said it was aware that X had filed the proceedings but could not comment as it had not seen the documents.
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X is engaged in several other legal battles against the regulator. Musk is a plaintiff in one of the cases, along with the group’s parent, X Holdings Corp.
Earlier this month the High Court heard another challenge by X to a commission investigation into the social media giant late last year under Europe’ Digital Services Act.
In November Coimisiún na Meán announced it was investigating whether X had breached article 20 of the act. That requires social media platforms to provide users with effective internal complaint-handling systems allowing them to appeal decisions taken by the platforms.
Those decisions can include whether or not to remove or prevent access to material on the sites, or to suspend or terminate accounts.
The regulator is also investigating other social media multinationals with European businesses based in the Republic.
Musk bought X for $44 billion (€38.57 billion) in October 2022. He immediately took the company private and dismissed many of its executives.
The billionaire is a shareholder in and chief executive of electric car maker Tesla and SpaceX, whose businesses include Starlink. He is a former adviser to US president Donald Trump.
