(DOWNLOAD) "Bonner v. Henderson" by Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Bonner v. Henderson
- Author : Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
- Release Date : January 31, 1998
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 50 KB
Description
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas I. Introduction and Background In the present case, we consider whether a trust constitutes an ""enterprise"" for purposes of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). 1 We hold that it does not. In 1941, Frania Tye Hunt created four trusts, collectively known as the Reliance Trusts, for the benefit of her four children. The plaintiffs, one of whom is the current trustee, and the other of whom is one of the trust's beneficiaries, filed the present suit against a former trustee and a host of others who allegedly participated in the fraudulent mismanagement of the trusts. The plaintiffs initially sought relief in state court, but voluntarily dismissed their claims. They subsequently filed suit in federal court, asserting claims both under RICO and state law. The defendants moved for dismissal under Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that the plaintiffs had not alleged the existence of an ""enterprise"" as contemplated by RICO, and therefore could not state a colorable claim. The district court granted the motion and declined to exercise jurisdiction over the outstanding state law claims. We affirm.