Sekhar v. United States

Sekhar v. United States

Argued April 23, 2013
Decided June 26, 2013
Full case name Giridhar C. Sekhar, petitioner, v. United States
Docket nos. 12-357
Citations

570 U.S. ___ (more)

Opinion announcement Opinion announcement
Prior history defendant convicted, unreported (N.D.N.Y.); affirmed 683 F.3d 436 (2nd Cir., 2012)
Holding
Attempting to compel a person to recommend that his employer approve an investment does not constitute “the obtaining of property from another” under the Hobbs Act.
Court membership
Chief Justice
John G. Roberts
Case opinions
Majority Scalia, joined by Roberts, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan
Concurrence Alito, joined by Kennedy, Sotomayor
Laws applied
Hobbs Act (1946)

Sekhar v. United States, 570 U.S. ___ (2013), is a United States Supreme Court decision regarding extortion under the Hobbs Act of 1946.[1]

Details

Tejas Sekhar was a partner at a venture capital firm based in Brookline, Mass. In 2009, Sekhar sent multiple emails to Luke Bierman, who was at the time legal counsel to New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. According to the emails obtained from Sekhar's home computer by the FBI, Sekhar demanded that Bierman advise the comptroller to commit to a $35 million retirement fund investment at Sekhar's firm, threatening to reveal details of Bierman's alleged extra-marital affair to his wife, DiNapoli, and the media.[2]

After initially being charged with coercion under state law, Sekhar was tried and convicted for attempted extortion under the federal Hobbs act. Sekhar's lawyers contended that the advice of a lawyer employed by the state was not a form of property that could be sought by threats, and hence that the extortion charge was not applicable in this case. The argument was refuted by a federal district court judge and by the Second Circuit court on appeal.[3] Sekhar's lawyers then approached the United States Supreme Court in September 2012.

Justice Antonin Scalia wrote for the majority. The Court held that legal advice could not be considered to be "transferable property" and therefore did not fit the definition of extortion under the Hobbs Act.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Gottlieb, Mike (June 26, 2013). "Details: Sekhar v. United States". SCOTUS Blog. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  2. ↑ Gavin, Robert (June 27, 2013). "U.S. Supreme Court says threat to OSC officer wasn't extortion". Times Union. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  3. ↑ Denniston, Lyle (April 22, 2013). "Legal advice as property". SCOTUS Blog. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
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