L.A.R. Misc. 112.1: Considerations Governing Review on Certiorari

(a) Review on writ of certiorari is not a matter of right, but of judicial discretion, and will be granted only when there are special and important reasons therefor. The following, while neither controlling nor limiting the court’s discretion, indicate the character of reasons that will be considered.

(1) The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands has decided a question in a way that conflicts with applicable decisions of this court, other appellate courts, or the United States Supreme Court.

(2) The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands has so far departed from the accepted and usual course of judicial proceedings, or so far sanctioned such a departure by a lower court, as to call for an exercise of this court’s powers of review.

(3) The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands has decided an important question of federal or territorial law that has not been, but should be, decided by this court.

(4) The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands was without jurisdiction of the case, or where, because of disqualifications or other reason, the decision of the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands lacks the concurrence of the required majority of qualified non-recused judges.

(b) A petition for a writ of certiorari will rarely be granted when the asserted error consists of erroneous findings of fact or the misapplication of a properly stated rule of law. A petition for writ of certiorari that raises any issue or relies on any material fact that was omitted from or misstated in the opinion of the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands will normally not be considered, unless the omission or misstatement was called to the attention of the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands in a petition for rehearing. All other issues and facts may be presented in the petition for a writ of certiorari without the necessity of filing a petition for rehearing.

L.A.R. 112.1 - 112.14 were enacted in 2007. The rules were amended in 2008 to provide for electronic filing.