Tesla asked law firm to fire attorney who worked on Elon Musk probe at SEC, report says

The new all-wheel-drive version of the Model S car was unveiled by Musk.

The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that a lawyer for the electric automaker asked a law firm to fire one of its attorneys or lose its work.

The lawyer that was asked to be fired byTesla worked at the Securities and Exchange Commission. According to the publication, the attorney interviewed Musk in the agency's probe into the CEO's claim that he obtained funding to take the company private. Musk agreed to step down as chairman of the company for three years as part of the settlement.

According to the Journal, the lawyer for the company asked the attorney who worked on the SEC investigation to be fired. The associate was not removed by the firm.

According to the Journal, the company has moved to replace several lawyers since December.

According to the Journal, Musk's rocket company has stopped working with the law firm on regulatory issues.

The SEC has ties to the company. David Misler was hired by the company as a managing counsel.

CNBC asked the three companies to comment, but they did not.

The full Journal report can be found here.

The story has been changed to show that Musk and the company agreed to pay a fine and that Musk stepped down as chairman.

You can subscribe to CNBC on the internet.