V.I. Supreme Court Strikes Down Law Prioritizing Seniors in Civil Cases. Now What?

“People should not be dying waiting for their case to be called. It’s just unconscionable,” said former Senator Janelle Sarauw, reacting to news that the V.I. Supreme Court had struck down a portion of Act 8468, ruling it unconstitutional.‌ The Act, which sought to grant seniors and the terminally ill preference in civil actions, was challenged as part of an ongoing lawsuit between Vincent Liger and several Limetree Bay companies over the contamination of his cistern. The court ultimately ruled that the section of the statute under scrutiny, which gave priority to residents over 80 years old, improperly infringed on the authority of individual judges to set their own dockets, and the judicial branch to manage its own affairs. Ms. Sarauw, who sponsored the bill in the 34th Legislature, noted that the measure came as a response to the “massive backlog” currently clogging the courts. “That was the Legislature’s attempt to put some fire under the judiciary to move cases.” She acknowledge...