Knowra RICO RICO The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act is a 1970 U.S. federal law that targets organized crime by prohibiting specified patterns of racketeering activity connected to an enterprise.
Racketeering activity : Crimes listed in RICO’s statute, including mail fraud, bribery, extortion, and specified forms of trafficking. A RICO claim must connect at least two qualifying acts to an enterprise.
United States v. Turkette : A 1981 Supreme Court case holding that an enterprise under RICO may be wholly illegitimate. The decision confirmed that criminal organizations themselves can qualify as RICO enterprises.
Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 : A federal law enacted in 1970 that included RICO and other measures aimed at organized crime. RICO is Title IX of this broader statute.
Hobbs Act : A federal law criminalizing robbery or extortion that affects interstate or foreign commerce. Hobbs Act extortion can be a predicate offense, but does not itself require a RICO enterprise or pattern.
Enterprise (RICO) : An entity or association of individuals that can serve as the enterprise in a RICO case. The alleged racketeering acts must relate to the affairs of an enterprise.
H.J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. : A 1989 Supreme Court decision explaining the relationship and continuity requirements for a RICO pattern. Its framework guides courts deciding whether alleged acts amount to a pattern.
Organized crime in the United States : Criminal activity conducted through durable groups, often involving illegal markets, corruption, or coercion. Congress designed RICO to address persistent criminal organizations and their influence.
Continuing Criminal Enterprise statute : A federal law imposing penalties on major drug offenders who organize or supervise a continuing drug enterprise. It targets a narrower drug-trafficking structure than RICO’s range of predicate crimes.
Pattern of racketeering activity : At least two qualifying racketeering acts within ten years, connected by continuity and relationship. RICO requires more than isolated wrongdoing: the acts must form a qualifying pattern.
Sedima, S.P.R.L. v. Imrex Co. : A 1985 Supreme Court case rejecting extra requirements for civil RICO claims based on prior criminal convictions or racketeering injury. The ruling helped broaden access to civil RICO lawsuits.
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