Do insurance policies cover damages awarded a plaintiff in a civil RICO claim?
The answer to this question depends upon the insurance policy(ies) in question. Generally, most insurance policies exclude from coverage any damages caused by intentional misconduct. For example, if you intentionally drove your car into an electrical pole, you couldn’t reasonably expect your comprehensive insurance coverage to reimburse you for the damage – otherwise, we could all intentionally abuse our property, but insurance rates would be so expensive that no one could afford insurance. Likewise, a corporate officer cannot intentionally mislead consumers and expect the corporation’s insurer to reimburse the corporation for the damages. Because all criminal violations arise out of intentional conduct, i.e., you cannot negligently commit a crime, and because all RICO claims arise out of criminal activity, it is unlikely that an insurance policy will cover any judgment obtained on the basis of a RICO violation.
