Estate of Johnson Clark v. William Horwich

MEMORANDUM

Plaintiff Peter Clark appeals the district court’s dismissal of his amended complaint. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

The district court did not err by dismissing Clark’s claims that arose before he filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. “[T]he bankruptcy trustee [has] the exclusive right to sue on behalf of the estate.” Estate of Spirtos v. One San Bernardino County Superior Court Case, 443 F.3d 1172 , 1176 (9th Cir. 2006). Clark does not have standing to bring those claims.

Clark’s only post-petition claim is his RICO claim, and the district court did not err by dismissing it. To prove a RICO claim, Clark had to show: “(1) conduct (2) of an enterprise (3) through a pattern (4) of racketeering activity (known as ‘predicate acts’) (5) causing injury to plaintiffs business or property.” United Bhd. of Carpenters & Joiners of Am. v. Bldg. & Const. Trades Dep’t, AFL-CIO, 770 F.3d 834, 837 (9th Cir. 2014). Clark alleged that Defendants engaged in various types of mail fraud, wire fraud, and bankruptcy fraud. These charges can serve as RICO predicate acts, but here, Clark did not provide sufficient factual allegations “to raise a right to relief…