Tesla Inc says a former battery factory worker who publicly criticised the company should be barred from using bankruptcy to avoid paying a US$425,000 debt from a years-long legal feud with Elon Musk.

The company on Tuesday (Jan 2) urged a bankruptcy judge not to let Martin Tripp off the hook after he acknowledged violating trade secret laws and confidentiality agreements.

The filing is the latest twist in a dispute dating back to 2018, when Tripp anonymously told the news media that Tesla was wasting a significant amount of raw materials at its Nevada Gigafactory. That ended up getting him fired, and escalated into an exchange of insults and lawsuits with Musk and Tesla.

Tripp agreed to pay US$400,000 in 2020 to settle Tesla’s suit accusing him of stealing confidential data. He’d also been ordered to pay Tesla US$25,000 in sanctions for posting court documents online in violation of a judge’s order.

Tripp had been making payments to Tesla until late September, when he filed for bankruptcy, according to Tuesday’s filing.

A representative for Tripp didn’t respond to a request for comment.

 - Bloomberg