Justice (Retd) Don Mitchell
CBE
Curriculum Vitae Ultima
|
Birth 15 August, 1946 |
Born Ian
Donaldson Mitchell at Basseterre, St Kitts, to Arthur Donaldson Mitchell, civil servant, of Basseterre, St
Kitts, deceased, and Murielle Agnes Mitchell
nee Owen of Molyneux, St Kitts, deceased |
|
Marital status 22 April, 1972 |
Married to Margaret Mary Mitchell, BA Hons (Lond),
FRGS, nee McCarthy, formerly of
Bristol, England |
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Citizenships |
British Overseas Territories Citizen by naturalisation in Anguilla |
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Anguillian by virtue of section 4(3) of the Anguilla Constitution
Order, 1982 |
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British Citizen by virtue of the British Nationality Act,
1981 as amended in 2002 |
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St Kitts-Nevis Citizen by birth |
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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Citizen by virtue of the birth of his father
in Chateaubelair on 26 November 1918 |
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Grenadian Citizen by virtue of the birth of his paternal
grandfather Rev Victor Donaldson Mitchell of Gouyave |
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Address |
Owen Lane, North Hill, PO Box 83, Anguilla |
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Education |
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1953 - 1955 |
Primary School - Mrs McCarthy’s Primary School, Woodford Lodge, Chaguanas, Trinidad |
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1955 - 1964 |
Secondary School - Abbey School, Mt St Benedict, Tunapuna, Trinidad |
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1965 - 1967 |
A-Levels - Becket College, St Mary at Hill, London |
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1968 - 1971 |
Degree of the Utter Bar – Hon Society of the Inner Temple |
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Calls
to the Bar |
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22 July 1971 |
Bar of England and Wales - at the Honourable Society of the Inner
Temple, London |
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27 Sept 1971 |
Bar of St Kitts-Nevis - at the High Court, Basseterre, St Kitts |
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11 February
1981 |
Bar of Anguilla - at the High Court, The Valley, Anguilla |
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18 October
1996 |
The Inner Bar - at the High Court, The Valley, Anguilla |
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Professional |
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1 August 1971 to 28 February 1972 |
Pupillage at the Chambers of Frank Henville QC, Basseterre, St
Kitts |
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1971 - 1976 |
Sole practitioner
at Chambers rented from the estate of the late Sir Geoffrey Boone, MC, QC, Bank Street, Basseterre, St Kitts, WI |
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1976 - 1980 |
Magistrate of Anguilla; Registrar of the Supreme Court; Coroner; Registrar
General of Births Deaths and Marriages; Registrar of Companies, Trade Marks,
Patents, Co-operative Societies, Credit Unions, Friendly Societies,
Newspapers, and Trades Unions; Secretary to the Medical Board; and Island Archivist |
|
1981 - 1999 |
Senior Partner
in the firm of Mitchell’s Chambers,
The Valley, Anguilla, WI, acting as solicitor and counsel in over 400 High
Court and Court of Appeal cases |
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April - July,
1997 |
Acting High Court Judge, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
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April – July,
1998 |
Acting High Court Judge, Saint Lucia |
|
1 August 1999
to 30 Sept 2004 |
Upon retirement
from private practice, served as a High
Court Judge of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in all of the nine
states and territories of the region served by the Court: The Virgin Islands, Anguilla, St Kitts and
Nevis, Antigua, Montserrat, Dominica, St Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, and Grenada |
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2010 - 2013 |
Acting Justice of the Court of
Appeal of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court |
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Pro-Bono Legal Services to the Community |
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1973 |
Helped to establish
the Caribbean Family Planning Affiliation,
an umbrella organisation of Caribbean FPAs, subsequently registered it in
Anguilla in 1985 as a not-for-profit corporation, and acted as its legal
adviser until retirement from private practice in 1999 |
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1978 |
Founding
member of the Anguilla Family Planning
Association, first an
unregistered body, later registered as a Friendly Society, and its honorary legal
adviser until retirement |
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1981 |
Registered the
Anguilla Hotel and Tourism Association
Ltd at the request of hoteliers Leon
Royden of Malliouhana Hotel and Jeremiah Gumbs of Rendezvous Bay Hotel as a
not-for-profit corporation, and acted as its legal adviser for several years |
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1983 |
Registered the
Friends of the Methodist Pre-School
Society as a Friendly Society, and acted as its legal adviser until retirement |
|
1990 |
Registered the
Anguilla Chamber of Commerce as a
not-for-profit corporation, and acted as its legal adviser for several years |
|
1993 |
Registered the
Anguilla Marine Heritage Society as
a not-for-profit corporation at the request of Evan Owen et al, and acted as
its legal adviser for several years |
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1993 |
Registered the
Princess Alexandra Hospital Auxiliary
as a Friendly Society, and acted as its legal adviser for several years |
|
1993 |
Appointed first
legal adviser to the Anguilla National
Trust, a statutory corporation with historical and environmental
objectives, and acted as its legal adviser until retirement |
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1998 |
Registered the
Caribbean Institute of Perinatology,
a regional medical charitable body, as a not-for-profit corporation, and acted
as its legal adviser until retirement |
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Other Non-legal Community Service and Awards |
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1972 - 1976 |
Member, and
later President, of the St Kitts
Jaycees, an international young person’s self-improvement organisation in
Basseterre, St Kitts |
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1972 - 1976 |
Member, and
later President, of the St Kitts-Nevis
Family Planning Association |
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1975 – 1999 |
Volunteer and elected
Member of the Board of the Caribbean
Family Planning Association from its foundation until retirement from the
practice of law |
|
1978 - present |
Founding
member, (and later President, and Honorary Member) of the Anguilla Rotary Club, an
international community service organisation |
|
1980 - 1989 |
Elected by the
family planning associations of the Caribbean to serve as a Board Member of
the International Planned Parenthood
Federation (Western Hemisphere Region) Inc, a New York-based not-for-profit
corporation which acts as an umbrella organisation for all the FPAs of the
Americas |
|
1983 |
Past
President, and Trustee Emeritus of the Anguilla
Archaeological and Historical Society |
|
1983 - 1999 |
Founding
member, later President, of the Anguilla
Bar Association |
|
1986 - 1999 |
Member of the Fountain National Park Development
Committee, appointed by Parliamentary Secretary, Rev John A Gumbs |
|
1988 |
Made a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary
International by the Anguilla Rotary Club in recognition of service to the
community |
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1988 - 1999 |
Member of the Caribbean Conservation Association, a
Barbados-based regional conservation organisation, subsequently serving as a
member of its Board of Directors |
|
1989 - 1992 |
Elected Honorary
International Legal Counsel to the International
Planned Parenthood Federation, a London-based umbrella organisation of
all the world’s family planning associations |
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1990 - present |
Life member of
the Association of Caribbean Historians |
|
1991 - 1999 |
Founding
member and long-time Board Member of the OECS
Bar Association |
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1991 - 1999 |
Coach to the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School
Literary and Debating Society, preparing students each year to compete in
the Leeward Islands Debating Competition |
|
1991 - present |
Life member of
the St Kitts Heritage Society, a
conservation and historical society |
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1993 - 1999 |
Member of the Anguilla National Steering Committee for
Money and Capital Markets of the ECCB, appointed by the Minister of
Finance |
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1994 - 1999 |
Member and
later President of the Anguilla
Financial Services Association, which groups all lawyers, accountants and
company management services in Anguilla |
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1995 |
Appointed a Senator of Jaycees International for services to the Anguilla Jaycees, #54198 |
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1995 - 1999 |
Member of the Marine Wrecks Committee, appointed by
the Parliamentary Secretary to advise on the conservation of Anguilla’s
underwater heritage |
|
2005 |
Appointed by
Her Majesty as Commander of the British
Empire (CBE) for legal
services to Anguilla and the region |
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Post-Judicial Public Service |
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2004 - 2009 |
Chair of the Anguilla Public Service Integrity Board |
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2006 - 2015 |
Trained Mediator for the Court Administered Mediation Project |
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2006 |
Chair of the Constitutional and Electoral Reform
Commission, appointed by the Governor in Council in Anguilla. The report can be found here: http://www.gov.ai/constitutional_reform.php
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|
2006 |
Chair of the Angelus Board of Assessment appointed
by Sir Cuthbert Sebastian, Governor General of St Kitts and Nevis |
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2006 - 2016 |
Volunteer
lawyer at the Anguilla Legal Aid
Clinic providing free legal aid services out of the offices of the
Department of Social Development and Her Majesty’s Prison - With the
assistance of members of the Anguilla Bar Association |
|
2007 - 2016 |
Lecturer in CAPE Law at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive
School, The Valley, Anguilla – with assistance from the members of the
Anguilla Bar Association while absent from Anguilla on judicial service. See below also under “Publications” |
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2009 |
Sole Commissioner
to Inquire into the Antigua Public
Utilities Authority, appointed by the Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda. The resulting Report can be found at: https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2006/02/4-apua-report-14-december-2005.html
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2015 - 2017 |
Chair of the Anguilla Constitutional and Electoral
Reform Committee, appointed by the Executive Council of Anguilla. The resulting Report can be found at: http://www.gov.ai/documents/anguilla_constitutional_electoral_reform.pdf |
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2016 - 2018 |
Board Member
of the Anguilla Financial Services
Commission: |
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Publications, Papers
and Presentations |
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|
1990 |
Anguilla from the Archives, 1650-1776. A
history of the first settlers of Anguilla, in 19 Chapters (revised July 2017
and August 2019) as follows: |
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Anguilla
From the Archives, 1650 - 1776:
Introduction and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/0._anguilla_from_the_archives._introduction.pdf
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Chapter 1. The
Geology and Botany of Anguilla and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/1._the_geology_and_botany.pdf
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Chapter 2. The
Amerindians and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/2._the_amerindians.pdf
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Chapter 3. The
Carib Raid and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/3._the_carib_raid.pdf
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Chapter 4. The
First Generation and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/4._the_first_generation.pdf
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Chapter 5. The
Second Generation and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/5._the_second_generation.pdf
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Chapter 6. War
and the Settlers and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/6._war_and_the_settlers.pdf
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Chapter 7. And also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/7._the_leeward_islands.pdf
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Chapter 8. Pirates
and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/8._pirates.pdf
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Chapter 9. The
Lure of Crab and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/9._the_lure_of_crab.pdf
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Chapter 10. Crab
Island Revisited [Part 1] Crab
Island Revisited [Part 2] And also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/10._crab_island_revisited.pdf
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Chapter 11. Cotton
and Salt and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/11._cotton_and_salt.pdf
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Chapter 12. The
French Wars also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/8._pirates.pdf
[different chapter title] |
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Chapter 13. Resettlement
Plans and also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/13._resettlement_plans.pdf
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Chapter 14. The
Third and Fourth Generations [Part 1] The
Third and Fourth Generations [Part 2] Also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/14._the_third_and_fourth_generations.pdf
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Chapter 15. Settling
St Croix also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/15._settling_st_croix.pdf
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Chapter 16. Government
Arrives also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/16._government_arrives.pdf
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Chapter 17. The
Council also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/17._the_council.pdf
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Chapter 18. Also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/18._sugar_arrives.pdf
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Chapter 19. Conclusion
also published at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/19._conclusion.pdf
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2002, 8 July |
Fact-Finding.
A presentation to the
Magistrates’ Orientation Programme held in Antigua |
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2004, 18
February |
Hallowed
Ground An after-dinner speech to
the Attorneys General of the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories,
at Peter Island in the Virgin Islands, while temporarily assigned to the High
Court in Tortola |
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2004, 10 July |
Recent
Developments in Caricom Law. A presentation
to the participants at the 11th
meeting of the Caribbean Association of Law Librarians in Nassau, Bahamas, on
the coming into effect of the CSME |
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2006 - 2010 |
Corruption-free Anguilla
Blog. A collection of social
commentary essays published over several years. |
|
2006, 13 March |
Ethics
and Integrity in the Government of Anguilla A presentation made at an Ethics and
Integrity in Government Workshop, held in Antigua, March 13th–15th, 2006,
with participation from Anguilla and the other BOTs in the Caribbean. |
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2006, 6 June |
Constitutional
and Electoral Reform: The Situation So
Far The
6th Annual Social Security “Walter G Hodge Memorial Anguilla Day Lecture”. A public lecture delivered at the House of
Chandeliers, South Hill, Anguilla. An
early draft of the eventual Report of the 2006 Commission’s Report. |
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2006, 25
August |
Report of the Constitutional
and Electoral Reform Commission.
(Chairman, Don Mitchell) |
|
2007, 15 March |
40
Years of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. A speech delivered by invitation to the
Court and the Bar in Antigua on the 40th anniversary of the Eastern Caribbean
Supreme Court |
|
2007, 1 March |
Law
and the Anguilla Revolution: An
article written for publication in the 40th Anniversary of the Anguilla Revolution
Magazine. Also published by the
Anguilla Archaeology and Historical Society at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/law_and_the_anguilla_revolution.pdf
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2008, 13 March |
A
Constitutional History of Anguilla. A presentation to the Anguilla National
Youth Council. Based on the Introduction
to the 2006 Report. Also published by
the Anguilla Archaeological and Historical Society at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/a_constitutional_history_of_anguilla.pdf
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2010, 16 June |
The
Place-names of Anguilla. A speech
to the AGM of the Anguilla Archaeological and Historical Society |
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2010 – present
|
Don Mitchell's Published Papers
Blog A collection of papers that I
may need to refer to when on line, and for which a link can be easily
provided |
|
2011, 18 March |
Cultural
Identity. A presentation to the
Youth Group of the Church of God (Holiness) at Pope Hill in Anguilla which examines
some of the negative and some of the positive aspects of Anguilla culture, and
which caused some of the “youth” to walk out of the Church Hall in protest |
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2011, 6 April |
Compulsory
Acquisition of Land in the Eastern Caribbean. A presentation to the Offshore Alert Conference in Miami on 6 April 2011, answering
allegations that US-owned private property in the Eastern Caribbean was at
risk of arbitrary confiscation without compensation. |
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2011, 28 April |
New
Perspectives in Oppression: The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and
the West Indian Colonies in 2011: A paper critical of the FCO’s failure to
develop institutions of good government, delivered at the University of the West Indies ‘Anguilla
Conference’ held at the National Bank of Anguilla Conference Room. Also published in
two parts on my Blog: Part 1, https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2011/04/beyond-walls-part-1.html And, Part 2, https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2011/04/beyond-walls-part-2.html |
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2011, 17 November
|
Sexual
Harassment. A presentation to a
Judges’ Colloquium on Gender and the Law, held in Castries, St Lucia. |
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2013, 4
January |
Eulogy
at Mother's Memorial Service. Eulogy
at the Memorial Service of Muriel Agnes Schleifer, formerly Mitchell, born
Owen. |
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2014, 12
September |
Election-related
Litigation in the OECS: Withstanding Interlocutory Strike-out
Applications. A
presentation at an OECS Bar Association Panel Discussion held during the 11th
Regional Law Conference in Anguilla. |
|
2015, 10
August |
Government,
Parliament and the Judiciary. A
presentation made to local, regional, and international parliamentarians at a
post-general election seminar held at the La Vue Hotel Conference Room, South
Hill, Anguilla. |
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2015, 3
October |
A
Corrupting Independence. A paper read at the annual Island Dynamics
Conference held at the University of Greenland in Nuuk on the theme, ‘Indigenous
Resources: Decolonisation and Development’. |
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2016, 21 May |
What
Value Myth over History? A
presentation to the Anguilla Literary Festival meeting at CuisinArt Hotel in
Anguilla. |
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2016, 6 April |
The
Public Accounts Committee in Anguilla.
A presentation to the PAC Workshop held at the House of Assembly on
the topic, “Engaging Civil Society Organisations in the Work of
the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Assembly of Anguilla. |
|
2016, 16
September |
Financial
Regulatory Issues Affecting the Commonwealth Caribbean. A presentation to the OECS Bar Association’s
Annual Law Fair and Conference, held at the Sandals Grande Hotel in St Lucia. |
|
2016, 3 November |
Constitutional
Reform - A Personal Perspective A public
presentation made at the Annual Law Week of the Grenada Bar Association in St
George’s, Grenada. |
|
2016, 3
December |
Some
of the Most Important Issues for Constitutional Reform. A presentation to the Continuing Legal
Education Seminar of the OECS Bar Council meeting in Anguilla. A revised version of a public presentation previously
made in Grenada. |
|
2017, 27 February |
Celebrating
the Past, Embracing the Future. A
speech, delivered by invitation, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Eastern
Caribbean Supreme Court, 1967 – 2017. Also published
on my Blog at https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2017/02/50-years-of-ecsc.html. Also published
at http://www.aahsanguilla.com/uploads/7/3/7/1/7371196/celebrating_the_past.pdf
|
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2017, 31 March |
Report
of the Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee. (Don Mitchell, Chairman) (Delivered to the
Executive Council of the Government of Anguilla) |
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2017, 12
September |
Anguilla's
Judicial System. A presentation commemorating
the 50th anniversary of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. Also published on my Blog at https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2017/09/anguillas-judicial-system-1650-2017.html |
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2018, 8 June |
The
History and Evolution of the Court System in Anguilla. A speech delivered at the launch of the
Computerised Registry System at the Court House. Also published on my Blog at https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2018/06/court-system-of-anguilla.html
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2018, 28
October |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2018/10/debtors-jail_28.html
An essay on the history of Debtor’s Prison in St Kitts, Nevis and
Anguilla |
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2019, 24 January |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-hypoglycemia-defence-in-anguilla.html An essay on the risk of ordering filleted snapper in Anguilla |
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2019, 31
December |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-hypoglycemia-defence-in-anguilla.html An essay on Ronald Webster’s relationship with labour in Anguilla |
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2020, 5 May |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-hypoglycemia-defence-in-anguilla.html The Hypoglycemia defence in Anguilla |
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2021, 6
January |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2021/01/gods-mother-and-father.html An essay on God’s mother and father |
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2021, 6 January |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2021/01/on-god_6.html An essay on God |
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2021, 25
November |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2021/11/wallblake-airport-and-tintamarre-during.html A historical note on Wallblake and Tintamarre |
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2022, 24
February |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/02/roads-in-anguilla.html An essay critical of the handling in Anguilla of public and private roads |
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2022, 27
February |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/02/non-roads.html An essay critical of the abuse of the public roads system in Anguilla |
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2022, 3 June |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/06/taxis.html An essay on the risks presented by unregistered taxis in Anguilla |
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2022, 15 July |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/07/abandoned-estates-in-anguilla.html An essay on unadministered estates in Anguilla |
|
2022, 11
November |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/11/casinos-soon-coming-to-anguilla.html
A first essay critical of government’s proposal to introduce casinos to
Anguilla |
|
2022, 8
December |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/12/new-anguillian-morality.html
An essay critical of government’s proposal to introduce casino gambling
into Anguilla |
|
2022, 16
December |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2022/12/modern-slavery-in-anguilla.html
An essay on the abuse of foreign employees by employers in Anguilla |
|
2023, 11 February |
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2023/02/integrity-in-public-service.html
An essay on Integrity in the Public Service. |
|
2023, 6 April |
A Short History of Anguilla’s Parliament: A Presentation to
members of the Commonwealth Parliamentarians Association meeting in Anguilla:
https://donmitchellcbeqc.blogspot.com/2023/04/a-short-history-of-anguillas-parliament.html
|
|
|
A series of six textbooks for CAPE Law
students in Anguilla published by Emmanuel Publishing House of Dominica |
|
2019 |
3rd Edition (with Stanley E Reid) as follows: |
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Unit 2 - The
Law of Tort for Anguilla |
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Unit 2 - The
Law of Contract for Anguilla |
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Unit 1 – Caribbean
Legal Systems for Anguilla |
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Unit 1 – Criminal
Law for Anguilla |
|
|
A series of six textbooks for CAPE Law
students in Grenada also published by Emmanuel Publishing House of Dominica |
|
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2nd Edition
(with Jasmin Redhead) as follows: |
|
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Unit 2 – The
Law of Contract for Grenada |
|
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Unit 2 - The
Law of Tort for Grenada |
|
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Unit 2 – The
Law of Real Property for Grenada |
|
|
1st Edition
(with Arya Redhead) as follows: |
|
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Unit 1 – Caribbean
Legal Systems for Grenada |
|
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Unit 1 – Principles
of Public Law for Grenada |
|
|
Unit 1 – Criminal
Law for Grenada |
Revised
January 16, 2019
8
October 2019
10
May 2023
