Legal History
The early legal history of the British Virgin Islands is somewhat hampered by the fact that in the days of colonisation it was often unclear who controlled the islands. The islands were first settled in modern times by the Dutch, but in 1628 the English crown granted patents for the settlement of what is now the British Virgin Islands to Lord Willoughby. The British expelled the Dutch in 1672 during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, but later evinced an intention to return the islands to the Dutch. They later resiled from this position and in 1698 the British government took the view that the Territory was a British possession (see generally: History of the British Virgin Islands).
It was not until 1773 that the British Virgin Islands actually had its own legislature. Prior to that date laws were extended to the Territory by the legislature of the Leeward Islands in Antigua. Some of these laws are still in force in the British Virgin Islands, such as the Common Law (Declaration of Application) Act (Cap 13), which dates from 1705. Doubts as to the validity of those statutes were removed by the Colonial Laws Validity Act 1865.
The Legislative Assembly first sat on 27 January 1774, however, it took a full further decade for a constitutional framework to be settled. Part of the problem was that the islands were so thinly populated, it was almost impossible to constitute the organs of government.
In 1776 George Suckling was appointed as Chief Justice, although he did not arrive until 1778, due to political maneuvering in the Territory. Having arrived, the legislature eventually got rid of Suckling by declining to pass the Court Bill. The first law ever to be passed by a local legislature in the British Virgin Islands concerned punishments for runaway slaves. The second provided a mechanism for settling longstanding boundary disputes. Both no doubt reflected the concerns of the islands free inhabitants.
But the Governor-General refused to assent to any bills until a Court Bill was passed. Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly needed to be approved by the Governor-General in Antigua, and early legislation was often vetoed. Laws could also still be passed by the Legislative Assembly of the Leeward Islands under a quasi-federal system, and these applied to all of the British territories in the Leeward Islands. However, the Governor-General used this veto force the Virgin Islands to pass legislation establishing a court.
Eventually the Court Bill was passed in 1783 together with a Bill validating titles as a form of compromise. Nonetheless, it took some time to obtain a Chief Justice whose appointment could be confirmed.
However, abolition of slavery and a collapse in sugar prices in the 19th century lead to the virtual economic ruin of the islands, and although the legislature limped along for some time, it was eventually formally dissolved in 1901. After the famous march of 1947 the legislature was restored in 1950, and permanent self-government was devolved in 1967.
Read more about this topic: Law Of The British Virgin Islands
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