RICO suit against gas marketer dropped
A federal judge dismissed a racketeering lawsuit against one of Georgia's natural gas marketers Friday.
The lawsuit accused Houston-based Stream Gas & Electric and its Ignite Holdings division of operating a pyramid scheme, in which participants get paid by recruiting newcomers.
In a release, Stream chairman Rob Snyder said its business was "completely ethical, legitimate and legal" and accused plaintiffs' attorneys of trying "to manipulate our legal system for windfall personal profit."
The court didn't rule on Stream's business model. U.S. District Judge Robert Vining, of the Northern District of Georgia's Rome Division, dismissed the case because the former Stream associates who sued had signed contracts agreeing to resolve any disputes with Stream through arbitration, instead of through the courts.
