{"ID":63678,"name":"Medical Marijuana, Inc. v. Horn","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/cases\/2024\/23-365","view_count":0,"docket_number":"23-365 ","additional_docket_numbers":null,"manner_of_jurisdiction":"Writ of \u003Ci\u003Ecertiorari\u003C\/i\u003E","first_party":"Medical Marijuana, Inc.","second_party":"Douglas J. Horn","timeline":[{"event":"Granted","dates":[1714366800],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55453"},{"event":"Argued","dates":[1728968400],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55522"},{"event":"Decided","dates":[1743570000],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55629"}],"lower_court":{"ID":7,"name":"United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/taxonomy\/term\/7"},"facts_of_the_case":"\u003Cp\u003EIn February 2012, Douglas J. Horn was involved in a car accident that caused injuries to his hip and right shoulder. While seeking alternative natural remedies, he discovered an advertisement for Dixie X CBD Dew Drops Tincture, which claimed to contain 0% THC and be compliant with federal law. As a commercial truck driver subject to random drug testing, Horn carefully investigated these claims before purchasing and consuming the product in October 2012. However, he subsequently failed a drug test and lost his job, wages, and benefits. Independent lab tests confirmed that Dixie X contained THC, contrary to the advertisement\u0027s claims.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOn August 6, 2015, Horn sued the companies who allegedly falsely marketed the product\u2014Medical Marijuana, Inc., Dixie Holdings, LLC, and Red Dice Holdings, LLC\u2014in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, which included a civil RICO claim and eight state law claims. The district court granted partial summary judgment to the defendants, concluding that Horn lacked RICO standing because he sued for the loss of earnings, which was derivative of an antecedent personal injury. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated, concluding that nothing in the text of RICO\u2019s civil-action provision, or in its structure or history, supports a rule that bars plaintiffs from suing simply because their otherwise recoverable economic losses happen to have been connected to a non-recoverable personal injury.\u003C\/p\u003E\n","question":"\u003Cp\u003EAre economic harms resulting from personal injuries properly considered injuries to \u201cbusiness or property by reason of\u201d the defendant\u2019s acts for purposes of a civil treble-damages action under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act?\u003C\/p\u003E\n","conclusion":"\u003Cp\u003EUnder the civil provision of RICO, 18 U. S. C. \u00a71964(c), a plaintiff may recover for harm to business or property even if that harm resulted from a personal injury. Justice Amy Coney Barrett authored the opinion of the Court on behalf of the 5-4 majority.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe phrase \u201cinjured in his business or property\u201d refers to the type of harm a plaintiff can recover for, not the cause of that harm. The ordinary meaning of injury\u2014harm or damage\u2014applies. While the statute excludes recovery for personal injury (like pain and suffering), it does not also exclude economic consequences flowing from a personal injury. For example, if physical injury forces someone to close their business, they may still recover under RICO for the resulting business loss. The text does not support reading an \u0022antecedent personal injury\u0022 bar into the statute.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EArguments that \u201cinjury\u201d should be interpreted narrowly to cover only tortious invasions of legal rights find no support in context, precedent, or the structure of RICO. The Court reaffirmed that the \u201cbusiness or property\u201d limitation is distinct from the cause of harm and that RICO precedents use terms like injury, harm, and damage interchangeably. Other limits on RICO suits\u2014such as the requirement of direct causation and a pattern of predicate acts\u2014already cabin its scope. Concerns about overreach must be addressed by Congress, not the courts.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustice Ketanji Brown Jackson filed a concurring opinion.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustice Clarence Thomas filed a dissenting opinion.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustice Brett Kavanaugh filed a dissenting opinion, in which Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito joined.\u003C\/p\u003E\n","advocates":[{"advocate":{"ID":34185,"name":"Lisa S. 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