NCJ Number
133252
Journal
American University Law Review Volume: 40 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1991) Pages: 919-956
Date Published
1991
Length
38 pages
Annotation
Focusing on the test the U.S. Supreme Court formulated to define a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) pattern of racketeering, this comment analyzes the Court's decision in H.J., Inc.
Abstract
An analysis of the cases decided after the Supreme Court's second attempt in H.J., Inc. to clarify the pattern requirements of RICO reveals that the Court's decision has failed to adequately define RICO's pattern requirement. Remedial legislation is indicated due to the fact that lower court rulings continue to present inconsistent interpretations of the pattern requirement. Such legislation needs to amend the definition of pattern with tight and unambiguous language in order to limit significantly the number of inappropriate RICO suits. A definition of pattern is proposed based on the premise that RICO should be used to target professional criminals dedicated to a life of crime. 245 footnotes