What is RICO?
RICO is short for the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which allows individuals to file suit against people who engage in “racketeering.” Racketeering can include a variety of statutorily defined crimes; mail and wire fraud are the most common examples. A brief guide to this quite complex statute is available at http://www.ricoact.com >>top Question: What are “punitive damages”? Answer: Punitive damages are damages intended to punish and deter similar wrongful conduct rather than merely compensate for losses suffered by the plaintiff (called compensatory damages). Punitive damages are authorized when the defendant acted with recklessness, malice, or deceit. As for the amount of punitive damages awardable, the Supreme Court has held that three guidelines help determine whether a punitive-damages award violates constitutional due process: (1) the reprehensibility of the conduct being punished; (2) the reasonableness of the relationship between the harm and the award; a
