Ken Lord was among those eager enough to see Star Citizen made a reality that he helped fund its initial Kickstarter campaign, as well as making subsequent payments in the years that followed. In total it's reported that he gave developer Roberts Space Industries (RSI) a whopping $4,500 USD, but after a while, Lord had a change of heart and looked to secure a refund. It turns out, however, that his claim has been dismissed and no refund will be offered.
Lord argued for a refund based on delays (originally the game was given a 2014 release window) and certain additions to the game that he thought changed the direction away from what was initially proposed. He also explained to Motherboard that his multiple sclerosis meant that he couldn't play the Squadron 42 FPS campaign, something that he outlined in a five-page letter to the developers.
After that request was ignored Lord took the studio to small claims court, but based on the terms and conditions he had agreed, his case was thrown out. However, RSI's terms and conditions have changed over time, and the terms under which his pledge was originally made were quite different to those available today as new ones have been subsequently added.
According to what Lord told Kotaku, his pledges were made in instalments over a number of years, and the key thing here is that later payments came under the revised terms, which he agreed to.
Later terms and conditions extended the length of time RSI had to deliver the game; presumably, the studio was protecting itself from these kinds of claims as the project ballooned and the release date slipped further and further back. As it stands in the latest terms, RSI won't refund anyone as long as the game remains in development.
Star Citizen, which was originally funded on Kickstarter back in 2012, remains in development and no final release date has been confirmed at the time of writing.