RACKETEER INFLUENCED & CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS ACT (RICO)

18 U.S.C. §§ 1961–1968

 

The United States Congress passed the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO),  (18 U.S.C. §§ 1961–1968) in 1970 as part of the Organized Crime Control Act. RICO provides both criminal penalties and a civil cause of action related to “racketeering” committed as part of a criminal organization. Punishable racketeering-related acts under RICO include ordering acts to be carried out. Corporations targeted for human rights accountability often use RICO against the activists and lawyers that challenge them. The human rights and corporate accountability community can also use RICO against corporations.