NCJ Number
115465
Journal
ABA (American Bar Association) Journal Dated: (February 1989) Pages: 56-59
Date Published
1989
Length
4 pages
Annotation
The range of legal realms in which The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) has been used in recent years suggests that far more questions remain to be answered about this controversial statute.
Abstract
The appeal of bringing civil suits under RICO is the option to sue for treble damages and attorneys fees. Specific cases in which RICO has been successfully used include sexual harassment of a female construction worker by her union coworkers, the firing of a 'whistle blower' by Ashland Oil Co., discrimination by a sheriff's department in assigning wrecker calls to the sheriff's friends, and property damage suffered by a bus company during a violent strike by the company's bus drivers. Increasingly, law firms, accounting firms, and insurance companies are becoming RICO targets. RICO is also upsetting the rules of the game in labor and employment law, bankruptcy, and even pensions. The debate over whether RICO can be applied to 'garden variety' business fraud was settled by the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision in Sedima, S.P.R.L. vs. Imrex Co., Inc. (1985). The courts must next answer if RICO has any limits with respect to its application to offenses committed by organizations.