Because Congress did not subject civil RICO claims to a statute of limitations, is it true that a civil RICO claim cannot be barred by a statute of limitations defense?
Congress did fail to subject federal civil RICO claims to a statute of limitations. This oversight, however, was remedied by the United States Supreme Court in Agency Holding Corp. v Malley-Duff & Associates, Inc., 483 U.S. 143 (1987), where the Supreme Court borrowed the four-year limitations period applicable to civil claims under the Clayton Antitrust Act and imposed the same limitations period on all civil RICO claims. Since the Supreme Court’s decision in Rotella v. Wood, 528 U.S. 549 (2000), courts have also agreed that RICO’s statute of limitations begins to run when the victim knew or reasonably should have known of its injury. In other words, once the victim knows or reasonably should know of his injury, he has four years to discover the other elements of his RICO claim and to bring an action in court.
Related Questions
- Because Congress did not subject civil RICO claims to a statute of limitations, is it true that a civil RICO claim cannot be barred by a statute of limitations defense?
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