Since the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), trade secret owners have been able to use allegations of trade secret misappropriation under the DTSA to support civil claims under the Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Specifically, DTSA violations that qualify as predicate acts can be used to show a pattern of racketeering activity, which may allow a trade secret owner to state civil claims under RICO, and thus take advantage of the substantial remedies that the RICO statute provides, including the potential for treble damages and attorney's fees.
To state a civil RICO claim, a plaintiff must allege:
(1) the existence of an enterprise affecting interstate commerce; (2) that the defendant was employed by or associated with the enterprise; (3) that the defendant participated, either directly or indirectly, in the conduct or the affairs of the enterprise; and (4) that the defendant participated through a pattern of racketeering activity that included at least two racketeering acts
Magnesita Refractories Co. v. Tianjin New Century Refractories Co., CIVIL ACTION NO. 1:17-CV-1587, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32559, at *28 (E.D. Pa. Feb 28, 2019).
Given the DTSA's relatively recent enactment in 2016, however, jurisprudence concerning what type(s) of violations may qualify as a "predicate act" under RICO is still developing. Interestingly, while several courts have found that the theft or receipt of trade secrets qualify as predicate acts, the circumstances under which the use of misappropriated...
