Law Commons^™

Reforming Rico: If, Why, And How, Rene Augustine

Vanderbilt Law Review

With its increased use both by prosecutors and private plaintiffs,the RICO statute has prompted a host of criticisms. For instance, some critics argue that Congress intended RICO to battle mafia crimes of the Al Capone genre, but that it has been applied in situations far beyond those Congress originally envisioned. Some seek RICO reform because of concerns that the statute may threaten civil liberties and chill free speech. Unhappiness with RICO has led to some uncommon alliances between diverse groups who wish to reform or repeal the statute. In fact, RICO itself has been applied to a wide variety of …

Introductory Remarks And A Comment On Civil Rico's Remedial Provisions, Robert K. Rasmussen

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Symposium comes at a very opportune time. RICO seems to be on everyone's mind. The attention that RICO has garnered in the last few years in the courts, the press, and the legal academy has in-creased steadily, and the cries for change, at least from some quarters,have become deafening. Judge David Sentelle of the D.C. Circuit Courtof Appeals recently labeled RICO "The Monster That Ate Jurisprudence;" Chief Justice William Rehnquist has repeatedly called for a defederalization of RICO; and groups as diverse as the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the American Civil Liberties Union have argued vociferously …

An Analysis Of The Myths That Bolster Efforts To Rewrite Rico And The Various Proposals For Reform:"Mother Of God-Is This The End Of Rico?", G. Robert Blakey, Thomas A. Perry

Vanderbilt Law Review

In 1970 Congress enacted the Organized Crime Control Act, Title IX of which is known as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. Congress enacted the 1970 Act to "strengthen[]the legal tools in the evidence-gathering process, [to] establish[] new penal prohibitions, and [to] provid[e] enhanced sanctions and new remedies .,, RICO covers violence, the provision of illegal goods and services, corruption in labor or management relations, corruption in government, and commercial fraud. Congress found in 1970 that the sanctions and remedies available to combat these crimes under the law then in force were unnecessarily limited in scope and …

A Conceptual, Practical, And Political Guide To Rico Reform, Gerard E. Lynch

Vanderbilt Law Review

RICO is nearing its twentieth birthday,' but it may not be a happy one. In fact, 'tis the season for critics of RICO to be, if not jolly, at least highly active. A House subcommittee and the Senate Judiciary Committee have held hearings on RICO reform, the popular and business press has published numerous debates and criticisms involving fairly arcane points of civil and criminal law, scholars and lawyers have filled law reviews and legal newspapers with articles often critical of the statute, and the pressure has been building for statutory changes.

As the pressure for change has intensified, and …