Title 4, Judiciary
22 chapters · 119 sections in this title.
4 V.I.C. § 71 Composition
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(a) The Superior Court of the Virgin Islands shall consist of not less than six (6) judges learned in the law, one half of whom shall reside in the division of St. Croix and one half of whom shall reside in the division of St. Thomas-St. John and two of whom must be judges of the…
4 V.I.C. § 72 Selection, appointment, qualifications and salaries of judges
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(a) The judges of the Superior Court shall be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Legislature. Judges so appointed shall continue in office until their successors are appointed and confirmed or until they are renominated and confirmed, but in no event sha…
4 V.I.C. § 72b General powers and duties of presiding judge; designation of judges and division of business
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(a) The presiding judge of the Superior Court shall be the administrative head of the Superior Court and shall preside at all sessions of the court which he attends. He shall be responsible for the observance by the court of the rules adopted by the Supreme court governing the pr…
4 V.I.C. § 73 Tenure of judges
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The judges of the Superior Court shall hold their offices for a term of six years unless sooner retired or removed in accordance with the provisions of this title.
4 V.I.C. § 74a Utilization of retired judges
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Pursuant to detailed court rules promulgated by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, former judges of the Courts of the Virgin Islands who completed at least 12 years of service as a Judge of the Superior or Supreme Court, and are not actively engaged in the practice of law be…
4 V.I.C. § 75 Exclusive jurisdiction
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(1) The Superior Court shall have original, exclusive jurisdiction—(1) of all civil actions wherein the matter in controversy does not exceed the sum or value of $500, exclusive of interest and costs;(2) of all criminal cases wherein the maximum punishment that may be imposed doe…
4 V.I.C. § 76 Original jurisdiction
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(a) Subject to the original jurisdiction conferred on the District Court by section 22 of the Revised Organic Act of 1954, as amended, effective October 1, 1991, the Superior Court shall have original jurisdiction in all civil actions regardless of the amount in controversy; to s…
4 V.I.C. § 77 Civil actions to be tried in superior court; transfers
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(a) Unless transferred by a judge of the district court, all civil cases originally filed in the Superior Court shall be tried and concluded in that court. (b) A judge of the district court may, in the interest of justice, cause a case or cases pending in the Superior Court to be…
4 V.I.C. § 78 Venue
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(a) All civil actions shall be initiated in the judicial division where the defendant resides or where the cause of action arose or where the defendant may be served with process. Criminal actions shall be brought in the judicial division in which the alleged criminal offense was…
4 V.I.C. § 79 Divisions of the court
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(a) The Superior Court shall be comprised of criminal, civil, traffic, family, magistrate judge's, conciliation and small claims divisions. The court may create such additional divisions as the public interest requires. The presiding judge shall from time to time designate and as…
4 V.I.C. § 80 Jury trials
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Commencing two years from the effective date of the revision of this chapter in the year 1977, in all cases in which the parties are entitled to a trial by jury and in which a jury trial is properly demanded, the action shall be tried to a jury composed by six members unless the …
4 V.I.C. § 81 Jurors; selection and compensation
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(a) The names of prospective jurors shall be drawn from the master jury wheel maintained by the court under a Plan for Random Selection of Jurors, similar to the plan embodied in Part IV of the Rules of the District Court, in such manner and at such times as shall be determined b…
4 V.I.C. § 82 Process
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(a) The process of the Superior Court runs throughout the territory. (b) Service of all process shall be made in any part of the territory by the Virgin Islands marshal and probation officer of the Superior Court and such other persons as may be authorized by law to serve such pr…
4 V.I.C. § 83 Procedure; rules and writs
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The practice and procedure in the Superior court shall be as prescribed by rules adopted by the Supreme Court. Subject to the approval of the Supreme Court, the Superior Court may from time to time prescribe rules for the conduct of its business consistent with law and with the r…
4 V.I.C. § 84 Sessions
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The Superior Court shall hold regular sessions in each judicial division at the times and places prescribed by the rules of the court. Special sessions may be held at such times and places as may be required.
4 V.I.C. § 85 Prosecution by the Attorney General
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Except as otherwise provided by law, the Attorney General of the Virgin Islands shall prosecute all offenses and conduct all legal proceedings on behalf of the Government of the Virgin Islands in the Superior Court.
4 V.I.C. § 86 Clerk; reporters
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The presiding judge of the Superior court shall appoint a clerk for the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands. The clerk shall, subject to provisions of sections 4, 5, 6, 31, and 32 of this title, appoint a chief deputy clerk for each judicial division of the court. The clerk, sub…
4 V.I.C. § 87 Microfilming; preservation; destruction of original records
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(a) The Superior Court is hereby authorized to microfilm in duplicate all original records, files and documents, with the exception of traffic tickets, maintained pursuant to its judicial function. All such original records, files and documents shall be retained until reproduced …
4 V.I.C. § 88 Leaves of absence for study with compensation; limitations
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(a) The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court may grant study leave to personnel of the judicial branch for the purpose of pursuing advanced training courses and programs within or outside the Virgin Islands. (b) Such study leave shall be implemented consistent with the terms and co…