Tesla’s General Counsel Quits After Less Than 3 Months

Dane Butswinkas, the Washington, D.C., trial lawyer who signed on as Tesla Inc.’s general counsel in early December, has quit.

Jonathan Chang, 40, vice president of Tesla’s legal department, has assumed the general counsel position.

Last autumn, Butswinkas (right) steered Tesla CEO Elon Musk through legal issues with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Those problems, which resulted in $40 million in penalties, were created when Musk inaccurately tweeted last August that he was ready to take the company private.

Butswinkas is returning to his family home in Washington, D.C., and resuming his trial practice with the Williams & Connolly law firm there. He says he expects to continue as an outside counsel to Tesla.