Court Opinion

ID: 9430180
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-02 23:29:08.349441+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:15:39.591505
License: Public Domain

Justice Powell,
dissenting.
I agree with Justice Marshall that the Court today reads the civil RICO statute in a way that validates uses of the statute that were never intended by Congress, and I join his dissent. I write separately to emphasize my disagree*524ment with the Court’s conclusion that the statute must be applied to authorize the types of private civil actions now being brought frequently against respected businesses to redress ordinary fraud and breach-of-contract cases.1
I
In United States v. Turkette, 452 U. S. 576 (1981), the Court noted that in construing the scope of a statute, its language, if unambiguous, must be regarded as conclusive “in the absence of ‘a clearly expressed legislative intent to the contrary.’” Id., at 580 (emphasis added) (quoting Consumer Product Safety Comm’n v. GTE Sylvania, Inc., 447 U. S. 102, 108 (1980)). Accord, Russello v. United States, 464 U. S. 16, 20 (1988). In both Turkette and Russello, we found that the “declared purpose” of Congress in enacting the RICO statute was “‘to seek the eradication of organized crime in the United States.’” United States v. Turkette, supra, at 589 (quoting the statement of findings prefacing the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970, Pub. L. 91-452, 84 Stat. 923); accord, Russello v. United States, supra, at 26-27. That organized crime was Congress’ target is apparent from the Act’s title, is made plain throughout the legislative history of the statute, see, e. g., S. Rep. No. 91-617, p. 76 (1969) (S. Rep.), and is acknowledged by all parties to these two cases. Accord, Report of the Ad Hoc Civil RICO Task Force of the ABA Section of Corporation, Banking and Business Law 70-92 (1985) (ABA Report). The legislative history cited by the Court today amply supports this conclusion, see ante, at 487-488, and the Court concedes that “in its private civil version, RICO is evolving into something quite *525different from the original conception of its enactors. See generally ABA Report 55-69. ” Ante, at 500. Yet, the Court concludes that it is compelled by the statutory language to construe § 1964(c) to reach garden-variety fraud and breach of contract cases such as those before us today. Ibid.
As the Court of Appeals observed in this case, “[i]f Congress had intended to provide a federal forum for plaintiffs for so many common law wrongs, it would at least have discussed it.”2 741 F. 2d 482, 492 (1984). The Court today concludes that Congress was aware of the broad scope of the statute, relying on the fact that some Congressmen objected to the possibility of abuse of the RICO statute by arguing that it could be used “to harass innocent businessmen.” H. R. Rep. No. 91-1549, p. 187 (1970) (dissenting views of Reps. Conyers, Mikva, and Ryan); 116 Cong. Rec. 35342 (1970) (remarks of Rep. Mikva).
In the legislative history of every statute, one may find critics of the bill who predict dire consequences in the event of its enactment. A court need not infer from such statements by opponents that Congress intended those consequences to occur, particularly where, as here, there is compelling evidence to the contrary. The legislative history reveals that Congress did not state explicitly that the statute would reach only members of the Mafia because it believed there were constitutional problems with establishing such a specific status offense. E. g., id., at 35343-35344 (remarks of Rep. Celler); id., at 35344 (remarks of Rep. Poff). Nonetheless, the legislative history makes clear that the statute was intended to be applied to organized crime, and an influential sponsor of the bill emphasized that any effect it had beyond such crime was meant to be only incidental. Id., at 18914 (remarks of Sen. McClellan).
*526The ABA study concurs in this view. The ABA Report states:
“In an attempt to ensure the constitutionality of the statute, Congress made the central proscription of the statute the use of a ‘pattern of racketeering activities’ in connection with an ‘enterprise,’ rather than merely outlawing membership in the Mafia, La Cosa Nostra, or other organized criminal syndicates. ‘Racketeering’ was defined to embrace a potpourri of federal and state criminal offenses deemed to be the type of criminal activities frequently engaged in by mobsters, racketeers and other traditional members of ‘organized crime.’ The ‘pattern’ element of the statute was designed to limit its application to planned, ongoing, continuing crime as opposed to sporadic, unrelated, isolated criminal episodes. The ‘enterprise’ element, when coupled with the ‘pattern’ requirement, was intended by the Congress to keep the reach of RICO focused directly on traditional organized crime and comparable ongoing criminal activities carried out in a structured, organized environment. The reach of the statute beyond traditional mobster and racketeer activity and comparable ongoing structured criminal enterprises, was intended to be incidental, and only to the extent necessary to maintain the constitutionality of a statute aimed primarily at organized crime.” Id., at 71-72 (footnote omitted).
It has turned out in this case that the naysayers’ dire predictions have come true. As the Court notes, ante, at 499, and n. 16, RICO has been interpreted so broadly that it has been used more often against respected businesses with no ties to organized crime, than against the mobsters who were the clearly intended target of the statute. While I acknowledge that the language of the statute may be read as broadly as the Court interprets it today, I do not believe that it must *527be so read. Nor do I believe that interpreting the statutory language more narrowly than the Court does will “eliminate the [civil RICO] private action,” ante, at 499, in cases of the kind clearly identified by the legislative history. The statute may and should be read narrowly to confine its reach to the type of conduct Congress had in mind. It is the duty of this Court to implement the unequivocal intention of Congress.
II
The language of this complex statute is susceptible of being read consistently with this intent. For example, the requirement in the statute of proof of a “pattern” of racketeering activity may be interpreted narrowly. Section 1961(5), defining “pattern of racketeering activity,” states that such a pattern “requires at least two acts of racketeering activity.” This contrasts with the definition of “racketeering activity” in § 1961(1), stating that such activity “means” any of a number of acts. The definition of “pattern” may thus logically be interpreted as meaning that the presence of the predicate acts is only the beginning: something more is required for a “pattern” to be proved. The ABA Report concurs in this view. It argues persuasively that “[t]he ‘pattern’ element of the statute was designed to limit its application to planned, ongoing, continuing crime as opposed to sporadic, unrelated, isolated criminal episodes,” ABA Report 72, such as the criminal acts alleged in the case before us today.
The legislative history bears out this interpretation of “pattern.” Senator McClellan, a leading sponsor of the bill, stated that “proof of two acts of racketeering activity, without more, does not establish a pattern.” 116 Cong. Rec. 18940 (1970). Likewise, the Senate Report considered the “concept of ‘pattern’ [to be] essential to the operation of the statute.” S. Rep., at 158. It stated that the bill was not aimed at sporadic activity, but that the “infiltration of legitimate business normally requires more than one ‘racketeering *528activity’ and the threat of continuing activity to be effective. It is this factor of continuity plus relationship which combines to produce a pattern.” Ibid, (emphasis added). The ABA Report suggests that to effectuate this legislative intent, “pattern” should be interpreted as requiring that (i) the racketeering acts be related to each other, (ii) they be part of some common scheme, and (iii) some sort of continuity between the acts or a threat of continuing criminal activity must be shown. ABA Report, at 193-208. By construing “pattern” to focus on the manner in which the crime was perpetrated, courts could go a long way toward limiting the reach of the statute to its intended target — organized crime.
The Court concedes that “pattern” could be narrowly construed, ante, at 496, n. 14, and notes that part of the reason civil RICO has been put to such extraordinary uses is because of the “failure of Congress and the courts to develop a meaningful concept of ‘pattern,’” ante, at 500. The Court declines to decide whether the defendants’ acts constitute such a pattern in this case, however, because it concludes that that question is not before the Court. Ibid. I agree that the scope of the “pattern” requirement is not included in the questions on which we granted certiorari. I am concerned, however, that in the course of rejecting the Court of Appeals’ ruling that the statute requires proof of a “racketeering injury” the Court has read the entire statute so broadly that it will be difficult, if not impossible, for courts to adopt a reading of “pattern” that will conform to the intention of Congress.
The Court bases its rejection of the “racketeering injury” requirement on the general principles that the RICO statute is to be read “broadly,” that it is to be “ ‘liberally construed to effectuate its remedial purposes,’” ante, at 498 (quoting Pub. L. 91-452, § 904(a), 84 Stat. 947), and that the statute was part of “an aggressive initiative to supplement old remedies and develop new methods for fighting crime.” Ante, at 498. Although the Court acknowledges that few of the legislative statements supporting these principles were made *529with reference to RICO’s private civil action, it concludes nevertheless that all of the Act’s provisions should be read in the “spirit” of these principles. Ibid. By constructing such a broad premise for its rejection of the “racketeering injury” requirement, the Court seems to mandate that all future courts read the entire statute broadly.
It is neither necessary to the Court’s decision, nor in my view correct, to read the civil RICO provisions so expansively. We ruled in Turkette and Russello that the statute must be read broadly and construed liberally to effectuate its remedial purposes, but like the legislative history to which the Court alludes, it is clear we were referring there to RICO’s criminal provisions. It does not necessarily follow that the same principles apply to RICO’s private civil provisions. The Senate Report recognized a difference between criminal and civil enforcement in describing proposed civil remedies that would have been available to the Government. It emphasized that although those proposed remedies were intended to place additional pressure on organized crime, they were intended to reach “essentially an economic, not a punitive goal.” S. Rep., at 81 (emphasis added). The Report elaborated as follows:
“However remedies may be fashioned, it is necessary to free the channels of commerce from predatory activities, but there is no intent to visit punishment on any individual; the purpose is civil. Punishment as such is limited to the criminal remedies . . . Ibid, (emphasis added; footnote omitted).
The reference in the Report to “predatory activities” was to organized crime. Only a small fraction of the scores of civil RICO cases now being brought implicate organized crime in any way.3 Typically, these suits are being brought — in the *530unfettered discretion of private litigants — in federal court against legitimate businesses seeking treble damages in ordinary fraud and contract cases. There is nothing comparable in those cases to the restraint on the institution of criminal suits exercised by Government prosecutorial discretion. Today’s opinion inevitably will encourage continued expansion of resort to RICO in cases of alleged fraud or contract violation rather than to the traditional remedies available in state court. As the Court of Appeals emphasized, it defies rational belief, particularly in light of the legislative history, that Congress intended this far-reaching result. Accordingly, I dissent.

 The Court says these suits are not being brought against the “archetypal, intimidating mobster” because of a “defect” that is “inherent in the statute.” Ante, at 499. If RICO must be construed as the Court holds, this is indeed a defect that Congress never intended. I do not believe that the statute must be construed in what in effect is an irrational manner.

 The force of this observation is accented by RICO’s provision "for treble damages — an enticing invitation to litigate these claims in federal courts.

 As noted in the ABA Report, of the 270 District Court RICO decisions prior to this year, only 3% (9 cases) were decided throughout the entire decade of the 1970’s, whereas 43% (116 cases) were decided in 1984. ABA Report, at 53a (Table). See ante, at 481, n. 1.