Class Settlement of RICO Pyramid Scheme Claims Approved

A class settlement over claims that Stream Energy’s Ignite marketing program was an illegal pyramid scheme was approved by a federal court in Texas.

The deal is part of a trend of cases in which the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act—a federal law usually associated with organized crime prosecutions—is implemented in civil anti-fraud cases.

The settlement is “fair, reasonable, adequate and in the best interests of the settlement class,” the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas said.

Plaintiffs in the case alleged that Ignite Holdings Ltd., SGE Management LLC, and related companies induced them to invest ...