FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – February 3, 2006              
Contact: Bryan Culbert (202) 463-5903
nclc@uschamber.com

NCLC Calls on Supreme Court to Halt Subversion of RICO Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Chamber Litigation Center (NCLC) – the public policy law firm of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States – filed an amicus curiae brief Feb. 2, 2006 with the U.S. Supreme Court in Mohawk Industries, Inc. v. Shirley Williams. In the case, Mohawk was found liable for subcontractor activities under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).
 
"RICO is an unusually potent weapon in the hands of skilled attorneys – the litigation equivalent of a thermonuclear device," said NCLC's Senior Vice President Robin Conrad. "Essentially here you have a statute designed to deter organized crime being used as a tool to force a legitimate company to pay damage awards three times above normal assertions of injury." 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit incorrectly held that any "loose or informal associations" constitute an enterprise, a designation the RICO statute requires to establish wrong-doing and treble liability. Allegations against Mohawk are that the corporation contracted with outside agencies to recruit undocumented workers.

"The business relationship Mohawk had with its subcontractor does not satisfy the statutory definition of an enterprise," said Conrad. "This case threatens to expand dramatically RICO liability for corporations that, to remain competitive, must rely more than ever on non-employees to provide goods and services."

The National Federation of Independent Business Legal Foundation and the Society for Human Resource Management joined NCLC's amicus brief.

The National Chamber Litigation Center is a membership organization that advocates fair treatment of business in the courts and before regulatory agencies.