The news that Elon Musk is funding The Mandalorian actress Gina Carano’s discrimination and wrongful termination lawsuit against Disney and Lucasfilm has put the ethics of the murky world of litigation finance in the spotlight.
Former MMA fighter Carano was fired from her role as Cara Dune in hit Star Wars spin-off show in 2021, following a post she made on X, formerly Twitter, which appeared to imply that discrimination of supporters of the US Republican party was akin to the treatment of Jewish people in Nazi Germany.
Lucasfilm, the production company behind The Mandalorian said at the time “her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable”.
On Tuesday, Carano filed a complaint in a California federal court, alleging she was fired for voicing right-wing and conservative opinions on social media, and was “harassed and defamed” for her views.
“My words were consistently twisted to demonise and dehumanise me as an alt right-wing extremist,” she wrote on X. “It was a bullying smear campaign aimed at silencing, destroying and making an example out of me.”
The lawsuit also alleges that Disney and Lucasfilm used “bullying, discriminatory and retaliatory actions”.
Carano’s lawsuit, in which she is seeking $75,000 in damages and a demand to be reinstated on the show, is being backed and funded by X and Tesla owner Musk.
“A couple months ago Elon Musk tweeted that if you had been fired from using the platform for exercising your right to free speech, he would like to offer these people legal representation,” Carano wrote on the platform. “Quite the noble offer, but never in my wildest dreams would I have thought anyone would take on my case against Lucasfilm/Disney.”
Why is Elon Musk involved in Gina Carano’s lawsuit?
Since he acquired X in 2022, Musk has been vocal about his support for “freedom of speech”, using his social media platform to rail against perceived infringements.
Last year, the billionaire became increasingly irate after the White House highlighted what it called “anti-Semitic and racist hate” on X.
“Twitter has had a massive drop in revenue, due to activist groups pressuring advertisers, even though nothing has changed with content moderation and we did everything we could to appease the activists,” he tweeted. “Extremely messed up! They’re trying to destroy free speech in America.”
In November, he told attendees at the DealBook Summit in New York: "I have no problem being hated. Hate away.”
Calling himself a “free speech absolutist” last year, Musk offered “no limits” funding for X users who believed they had been discriminated against for what they post on the platform. He also wrote that he would “go after the boards of directors of the companies too”.
Things came to a head when a number of prominent brands including Disney halted their advertising on X in November following Musk's public support for an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory favoured by White supremacists.
Musk did not hide his displeasure at the entertainment giant, even asking for chief executive Bob Iger to be fired. “Walt Disney is turning in his grave over what Bob has done to his company," he posted.
X’s head of business operations Joe Benarroch said supporting Carano's lawsuit was "a sign of X Corp's commitment to free speech".
Carano said she messaged X to take up her cause and was later contacted by a lawyer who has taken on her case, funded by Musk.
She posted: “I am honoured that my case has been chosen to be supported by the company that has been one of the last glimmers of hope for free speech in the world.”
Hulk Hogan’s secret billionaire backer
With Disney worth an estimated $182 billion and Musk $194 billion, the legal battle appears equal from a financial and power-balance perspective.
Musk’s involvement has highlighted what those with deep pockets can achieve when taking on others without access to similar funds.
One of the most famous cases of what is known as litigation finance or “champerty” (from the French, Champart, a tax once levied on tenants by landowners) involved billionaire PayPal founder Peter Thiel.
In 2016, Thiel told The New York Times that he had secretly paid legal expenses amounting to $10 million to fund several lawsuits, none of them his own, against New York-based media company, Gawker Media.
One involved wrestler Hulk Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, who in 2013 sued Gawker Media for invasion of privacy after it had published parts of an intimate tape Hogan made with his best friend’s wife Heather Clem.
With Thiel bearing the brunt of the legal costs, Hogan won the case in 2016 and was awarded $140 million in damages. The decision bankrupted Gawker, causing it to shut down.
Thiel’s identity as Hogan’s financial backer was kept under wraps throughout the case but the entrepreneur later told The New York Times: “It’s less about revenge and more about specific deterrence.”
The admission led one X user to note: “Peter Thiel just invented revenge litigation finance.”
After the $140 million ruling, Gawker Media founder Nick Denton called Thiel’s involvement a “vindictive decade-long campaign” that “is quite out of proportion to the hurt you claim”. It was a reference to a 2007 story posted on Gawker’s blog that discussed Thiel’s sexuality.
Josh Marshall, founder of the political website Talking Points Memo, wrote of the case: “You may not like Gawker … but if the extremely wealthy, under a veil secrecy, can destroy publications they want to silence, that’s a far bigger threat to freedom of the press than most of the things we commonly worry about on that front.”
'A chilling indicator'
The process by which anonymous donors can fund another person’s legal dispute, champerty, is defined in Webster’s Dictionary as “a proceeding by which a person not a party in a suit bargains to aid in or carry on its prosecution or defence in consideration of a share of the matter in suit”.
Billionaires have long butted heads with the media and thanks to their wealth can afford to wage lengthy legal campaigns.
In 2015, the political website Mother Jones gave details of its years-long defamation battle with US entrepreneur and Republican party donor Frank VanderSloot.
“What we do know is that the take-no-prisoners legal assault from VanderSloot and Melaleuca has consumed a good part of the past two and a half years and has cost millions (yes, millions) in legal fees,” it wrote.
“But make no mistake: this was not a dispute over a few words. It was a push, by a super-rich businessman and donor to wipe out news coverage that he disapproved of. Had he been successful, it would have been a chilling indicator that the 0.01 per cent can control not only the financing of political campaigns, but also media coverage of those campaigns.”
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
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- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The Energy Research Centre
Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
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Why are you, you?
Why are you, you?
From this question, a new beginning.
From this question, a new destiny.
For you are a world, and a meeting of worlds.
Our dream is to unite that which has been
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The Indoor Cricket World Cup
When: September 16-23
Where: Insportz, Dubai
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
Crazy Rich Asians
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeon, Gemma Chan
Four stars
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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- 600-seat auditorium
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The specs: Hyundai Ionic Hybrid
Price, base: Dh117,000 (estimate)
Engine: 1.6L four-cylinder, with 1.56kWh battery
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power: 105hp (engine), plus 43.5hp (battery)
Torque: 147Nm (engine), plus 170Nm (battery)
Fuel economy, combined: 3.4L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Student Of The Year 2
Director: Punit Malhotra
Stars: Tiger Shroff, Tara Sutaria, Ananya Pandey, Aditya Seal
1.5 stars
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
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The biog
Favourite food: Tabbouleh, greek salad and sushi
Favourite TV show: That 70s Show
Favourite animal: Ferrets, they are smart, sensitive, playful and loving
Favourite holiday destination: Seychelles, my resolution for 2020 is to visit as many spiritual retreats and animal shelters across the world as I can
Name of first pet: Eddy, a Persian cat that showed up at our home
Favourite dog breed: I love them all - if I had to pick Yorkshire terrier for small dogs and St Bernard's for big
