What alleged conduct would a person have committed to be named as a defendant in a RICO lawsuit?

A person can be named as a defendant in a civil RICO suit if the complaint alleges that the person engaged in one of RICO’s prohibited forms of conduct under 18 U.S.C. § 1962—most commonly by participating in the operation or management of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, or by conspiring to do so. The allegations must also tie that conduct to the statutory elements of a RICO “pattern,” which generally means related predicate acts showing continuity or a threat of continued criminal activity. H.J. Inc. v. Nw. Bell Tel. Co., 492 U.S. 229 (1989)

What conduct is alleged in a RICO complaint?

RICO does not just target “bad behavior” generally. The complaint typically alleges that the defendant:

1. Committed racketeering acts
   The alleged acts must fit within RICO’s definition of “racketeering activity,” such as mail fraud, wire fraud, bribery, extortion, securities fraud, or other specified offenses. 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1)
   RICO’s “pattern” element requires at least two racketeering acts within the statutory period, but two acts alone are not necessarily enough. 18 U.S.C. § 1961(5); H.J. Inc. v. Nw. Bell Tel. Co., 492 U.S. 229 (1989)

2. Used, acquired, or controlled an enterprise through that pattern
   Depending on the subsection, the defendant may be alleged to have:

   • used income from racketeering to acquire or operate an enterprise, 18 U.S.C. § 1962(a)
   • acquired or maintained control of an enterprise through racketeering, 18 U.S.C. § 1962(b)
   • conducted or participated in the enterprise’s affairs through racketeering, 18 U.S.C. § 1962(c)
   • or conspired to do any of the above. 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)

3. Participated in an enterprise
   Under RICO, the “enterprise” is separate from the pattern of racketeering activity. The Supreme Court has explained that the enterprise is an entity or association, while the pattern is the series of criminal acts. United States v. Turkette, 452 U.S. 576 (1981); Boyle v. United States, 556 U.S. 938 (2009)

What the complaint often looks like in practice

A RICO defendant is often alleged to have done things like:

Key point on the “pattern” requirement

The Supreme Court rejected the idea that a plaintiff must always plead multiple separate schemes. Instead, the plaintiff must allege predicate acts that are related and that amount to or threaten continued criminal activity. H.J. Inc. v. Nw. Bell Tel. Co., 492 U.S. 229 (1989)

In short, a RICO defendant is alleged to have committed specified predicate crimes and to have used those crimes to conduct, acquire, or influence an enterprise, or to have conspired to do so. 18 U.S.C. § 1962; 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1)

If you want, I can also give you:

• a plain-English explanation of each RICO subsection in a chart, or
• a sample complaint-style allegation showing how plaintiffs plead a defendant into a civil RICO case.