The makers of the party game Cards Against Humanity have filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk’s SpaceX, accusing the company of trespassing on and damaging land owned by the game company in Texas. The suit, filed on Thursday, seeks $15 million in damages, which includes compensation for the destruction of natural vegetation on the property.
According to Cards Against Humanity, the land near Brownsville, Texas, was purchased in 2017 during a crowdfunding campaign aimed at obstructing former President Donald Trump’s plan to construct a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. While no wall was ever built on the site, the company maintains a “No Trespassing” sign on the property, as originally reported by NBC News.
The lawsuit claims that SpaceX has been using the land for the past six months without permission, using it as a staging area for construction projects. Activities such as clearing vegetation, parking vehicles, storing materials, and operating generators are among the cited actions that allegedly damaged the land.
“Cards Against Humanity acquired the property for the sole purpose of preserving its natural state,” the lawsuit states. The game maker also argues that the unauthorized use of the land has negatively impacted its relationship with the 150,000 supporters who contributed to the original land purchase through a $15 crowdfunding effort.
Despite complaints from Cards Against Humanity, the company claims SpaceX responded with an offer to buy the land at less than half its value, accompanied by a 12-hour deadline for acceptance. The game company declined the offer and made a tongue-in-cheek counter, stating that it would “accept Twitter.com as compensation,” referring to the social media platform Musk acquired in 2022 and later renamed X.
SpaceX, which operates its Starbase facility nearby, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The company has faced criticism in the past for its environmental impact in the region, with state agencies citing violations of environmental regulations at its Texas launch site.
Cards Against Humanity has vowed to distribute any financial award from the lawsuit back to the original 150,000 donors, promising up to $100 per person if successful.
