Questions Presented
Whether a competitor is “injured in his business or property by reason of a violation” of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act where the alleged predicate acts of racketeering activity were mail fraud but the competitor was not the party defrauded and did not rely on the alleged fraudulent behavior.
Case Updates
Outcome
June 05, 2006
The Supreme Court significantly limited the scope of private actions that can be brought under RICO by requiring a plaintiff to show that he or she was directly harmed by racketeering activity. The court declined to resolve the circuit split regarding reliance in RICO cases, but instead relied on Holmes v. Securities Investor Protection Corporation to impose an equally important check against the misuse of RICO.
U.S. Chamber files amicus brief in RICO case
January 12, 2006
NCLC urged the Supreme Court to reverse the decision of the Second Circuit that plaintiffs seeking treble damages under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) could prove acts of fraud by relying on the reliance of other parties on the alleged misstatements. In this case, the plaintiff contends that the defendant submitted fraudulent sales tax receipts to the New York state government and thereby was able to charge a lower price for its products than the plaintiff could. NCLC explained that RICO was not intended to be a private statute for individuals to combat fraud against the government. In addition, NCLC described the ongoing circuit split on the issue of reliance in RICO cases and urged the court to resolve it.