Legal Memorandum: Claims for VI Antimonopoly Law Violation

Issue: Under the law of the Virgin Islands, what must a plaintiff establish to prevail on a claim brought as a violation of the Virgin Islands Antimonopoly Law?

The Virgin Islands Antimonopoly Law has provisions similar to the federal Sherman Antitrust Act. V.I. Code Ann. tit. 11, § 1503.  The Law makes it a violation to:

(1)  Make any contract with, or engage in any combination or conspiracy with, any other person who is, or but for a prior agreement would be, a competitor of such person:

(a)  for the purpose or with the effect of fixing, controlling, or maintaining the price or rate charged for any commodity sold or bought by the parties thereto, or the fee charged or paid for any service performed or received by the parties thereto;

(b)  fixing, controlling, maintaining, limiting, or discontinuing the production, manufacture, mining, sale or supply of any commodity, or the sale or supply of any service, for the purpose or with the effect stated in paragraph (a) of subsection (1);

(c)  allocating or dividing customers, territories, supplies, sales, or markets, functional or geographical, for any commodity or service[.]

Id.  A person injured by a violation may seek treble damages, expenses, and attorneys’ fees.  V.I. Code Ann. tit. 11, § 1507(2). 

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