In considering an application for regular admission to the Virgin Islands Bar, the Court holds that an applicant who earned his Juris Doctor degree from the Southern New England School of Law has satisfied the educational requirement set forth in Supreme Court Rule 204(d)(5). Although the Southern New England School of Law was not accredited by the American Bar Association at the time the applicant graduated, it became accredited two years later after its merger with the University of Massachusetts. Since the plain text of Rule 204(d)(5) does not require that the law school be accredited by the American Bar Association at the precise time of graduation, the applicant has satisfied the educational requirement because he graduated from a law school that is now accredited by the American Bar Association. Therefore, the applicant may sit for the July 2018 administration of the Virgin Islands Bar Examination.
Supreme Court Of The Virgin Islands