U.S. Justice Department Seeks To Join Elon Musk And X Appeal Of €120 Million EU Fine

US backs Musk in EU fight

The United States Justice Department asked to intervene in Elon Musk and X’s legal challenge to a €120 million fine imposed by the European Commission, and the request was filed with the General Court of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg.

Brett Shumate, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said, "The European Commission inappropriately attempted to expand its regulatory authority to reach American companies not present or operating within its jurisdiction," as the US sought to support the bid to annul the Commission’s Dec. 5, 2025 decision.

Anadolu Ajansı

The European Commission fined X in December after finding that the platform breached three transparency obligations under the EU’s Digital Services Act, including the “deceptive design” of its blue checkmark system.

The US intervention request asked the court to decide whether to accept the application, and the statute governing the EU’s Court of Justice allows a state to intervene if it can demonstrate an interest in the outcome of a case.

The dispute centered on cases including X Internet and X Holdings v. Commission and Musk v. Commission, both seeking to annul the Commission’s Dec. 5, 2025 decision finding breaches of the EU’s Digital Services Act.

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EU says it will defend

Thomas Regnier, the European Commission spokesperson for Technological Sovereignty, said the Commission is "absolutely prepared" to defend the €120 million fine against X in court after the United States requested to participate in the appeal. Regnier argued that the Commission has "a very solid case" and said, "We are ready to defend our position in court," as the General Court decides whether to accept the US intervention request. The European Commission said X’s pay-to-obtain blue “verified” status could mislead users because the platform did not meaningfully confirm identities.

The Commission also said X’s advertising database lacked sufficient information about ads and who paid for them, and it said X’s terms and procedures placed unnecessary barriers on eligible researchers seeking to study systemic risks on the platform. Brett Shumate said the Justice Department would not tolerate what he called regulatory overreach, adding, "We will not tolerate the European Commission engaging in regulatory over-reach to try and control American engines of innovation and economic growth."

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What the fine means next

The European Commission said the penalty was the first non-compliance fine issued under the Digital Services Act, which became broadly applicable in February 2024. The law allows the Commission to investigate major online platforms and impose fines of up to 6% of a provider’s global annual revenue for violations, and companies may appeal enforcement decisions before EU courts. The Commission’s enforcement decision against X followed findings that the blue checkmark system used a deceptive design, that X’s advertising repository lacked sufficient transparency, and that researchers faced barriers to accessing public data.

The Justice Department said the European decision raises questions about the extraterritorial application of EU rules and the responsibility of several companies linked to Musk, while the Commission said it is simply protecting its digital and democratic standards. The dispute also sits within broader tensions between Washington and Brussels over the EU’s regulation of large technology companies headquartered in the United States, with the court now tasked with deciding whether to accept the US intervention request.

SourcesAnadolu Ajansı