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Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands

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The Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands is the principal legal adviser to the Government of the British Virgin Islands.[1] Under the Constitution of the British Virgin Islands the Attorney General sits ex officio in both the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands[2] and in the Cabinet of the British Virgin Islands,[3] but is not permitted to vote in either. The Attorney General also sits on the Committee for the Prerogative of Mercy[4] and on the National Security Council.[5]

The office traces its origins back to the reintroduction of democracy in the British Virgin Islands pursuant to the 1950 general election. At that time the Legislative Council (as it was then known) had to look to the Attorney General of the Leeward Islands for support. This was regarded as unsatisfactory and following the 1954 general election Herman Besson was appointed to the title of Legal Assistant to the Legislative Council. In 1959 the title of the office was changed to Crown Attorney, and subsequent to the introduction of Ministerial Government following the 1967 general election the office was titled Attorney General.[6]

The Attorney General is supported by two senior law officers: the Solicitor General (in relation to civil matters) and the Director of Public Prosecutions (in relation to criminal matters).

When appearing in court, by convention the Attorney General sits one row in from the of the row reserved for Queen's Counsel.

The current Attorney General is Dr Christopher Malcolm.

Qualifications

In order to be qualified to be appointed as Attorney General a person must be eligible to be admitted as a lawyer in the British Virgin Islands, and must have not less than 10 years experience practising law.[7]

By law, since 2007 no person may be appointed to the office of Attorney General unless he or she is a Belonger to the Virgin Islands unless, in the opinion of the Judicial and Legal Services Commission, there is no such person who is suitably qualified and able and willing to be so appointed.[8] In practice, every single Attorney General appointed since 2007 has been a non-Belonger, and only one Attorney General in the history of the British Virgin Islands has been a belonger (Dancia Penn).

List of Attorneys General of the British Virgin Islands

A total of 24 persons have been appointed to the office (including as Crown Attorney or Legal Assistant prior to 1967, and persons who were appointed as acting Attorney General), of whom 18 have been men and six have been women. Four have been Queen's Counsel (although two were appointed to the rank during office), and the remaining 20 have been from the Outer bar or solicitors.

Attorneys General of the British Virgin Islands[9]
Office holder Title of office Dates
Herman A. Besson Legal Assistant 1954 - 1958
Oliver M. Browne Crown Attorney 1959
George A. Redhead Crown Attorney 1959 - 1962
John A.B. Barwick, QC Crown Attorney 1962 - 1964
Leo I. Austin Crown Attorney 1964
J.S. Archibald, QC Crown Attorney 1964 - 1965
Lionel W. Barker Crown Attorney 1965 - 1966
Attorney General 1967 - 1971
Paula F. Beaubrun Attorney General Unclear
Nolan Jacobs Attorney General 1972
Edgar A.C. Hewlett Attorney General 1975
Jack Smith Hughes OBE Attorney General 1975
Clare I. Roberts Attorney General 1976
Paula F. Beaubrun Attorney General 1977
Michael J. Bradley Attorney General 1978
Velma I.H. Gayle Attorney General 1979
Sandra M.H. DeSilva Attorney General 1979 - 1982
Lewis Hunte Attorney General 1982 - 1986
Karl S. Atterbury Attorney General 1986 - 1990
Donald A.B. Trotman Attorney General 1992 - 1993
Davidson K. Baptiste Attorney General (acting) 1993
Dancia Penn, QC, OBE Attorney General 1993 - 1999
Cherno Jallow, QC Attorney General 1999 - 2007
Kathleen Ayensu Attorney General 25 June 2007 - 6 November 2011
Dr Christopher Malcom[10] Attorney General 7 November 2011 - Present

Footnotes

  1. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 58(2)
  2. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 63(1)
  3. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 47(1)
  4. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 44(1)
  5. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 57(1)(d)
  6. ^ "BVI election and information results 1950–2011" (PDF). BVI Deputy Governor's Office. pp. 195–199.
  7. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 95(5)
  8. ^ Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007, section 95(6)
  9. ^ "BVI election and information results 1950–2011" (PDF). BVI Deputy Governor's Office. pp. 195–199.
  10. ^ "Jamaican lawyer appointed attorney general overseas". The Gleaner (Jamaica). 20 November 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
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