Litigation Practice - RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations)

“When you have a complex RICO question, you get John Floyd’s book and try and figure it out. If you can’t figure it out, you call John.” – Former Attorney General of Georgia

The firm’s RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) practice is regularly involved in high-stakes RICO cases across the country. We are frequently called upon to represent both plaintiffs and defendants at the trial and appellate levels in federal and state courts.

Our highly regarded RICO group includes John Floyd, the author of the only book analyzing every state RICO statute, who regularly gives lectures and chairs seminars on RICO topics to lawyers in private practice, corporate practice and law enforcement. We also assist prosecutors with complex RICO actions, including the successful prosecution of the former sheriff of DeKalb County.

Representative Work

• Successfully defended a sizeable jury award secured by a chemical sales company in a civil RICO trial in two appeals to the Supreme Court of Georgia.  In these cases, the Georgia Supreme Court recognized, for the first time, that corporations can be sued under the Georgia RICO Act and that the preponderance-of-the-evidence burden of proof applies to such claims.
• Represented a class in a federal and Georgia RICO action involving the employment of illegal workers. 
• Defeated, on appeal, a RICO claim against Georgia title pawn brokers in both the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Georgia.
• Successfully defended the officers of a nursing home company against fraud and racketeering claims brought by directors and shareholders seeking more than $370 million.
• Represented a defendant accused of participating in a commercial fruad ring, settling the the case on terms that were favorable to our client and re-establishing a business relationship between the defendant and the plaintiff company.
• Acted as co-counsel in the defense of a subsidiary of a Fortune 500 corporation during a RICO prosecution by a Midwestern district attorneys’ office.
• Helped convict the former sheriff of DeKalb County, who was found guilty of ordering the murder of his elected successor, and successfully defended the conviction in the Georgia Supreme Court.
• Helped convict two members of the faculty at The Medical College of Georgia who had stolen more than $10 million in research funds. Nearly all of the stolen funds were subsequently recovered.

News

Publications

Speaking Engagements

Practice Contacts

• Ronan P. Doherty
• John E. Floyd
• Benjamin E. Fox
• H. Lamar "Mickey" Mixson
• Jill A. Pryor
• Steven J. Rosenwasser
• Michael B. Terry