NCJ Number
130270
Journal
St. John's Law Review Volume: 64 Issue: 4 Dated: special issue (Fall 1990) Pages: 917-930
Date Published
1990
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act has been used recently with some success to bolster existing remedies for compensating victims of hazardous waste mismanagement.
Abstract
Section 1962 of RICO prohibits any person from using money derived from a pattern of racketeering activity to invest in an enterprise, acquire control of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering, conduct an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering, or conspire to engage in any of the preceding prohibited acts. In most RICO-based hazardous waste suits, it is alleged that the defendant conducted business through a pattern of racketeering activity in violation of Section 1962. Proof of causation has emerged as a primary obstacle to recovery in RICO-based hazardous waste claims, and several recent cases illustrate the difficulties victims face in satisfying RICO's causation requirement. After proving a Section 1962 violation, plaintiffs must demonstrate that their business or property damage was caused by the commission of predicate acts of racketeering or by an unlawful competitive advantage gained through the commission of predicate acts of racketeering. Because violations of Federal environmental statutes do not in themselves constitute racketeering activity, victims of hazardous waste mismanagement instead base their RICO claims on alleged acts of mail or wire fraud. Reliance on mail or wire fraud as predicate offenses effectively prevents at least one class of injured plaintiffs from recovering property damages. 80 footnotes