The Honorable Debra S. Watlington, presiding judge of the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands advises the public and the members of the Virgin Islands Bar Association of the reappointment of the Honorable Ernest E. Morris Jr. to serve a second 4-year term as magistrate judge of the Superior Court.
Pursuant to 4 V.I.C. § 122 (a), the Honorable Debra S. Watlington provided the 60-day notice of term expiration and sought public input regarding the reappointment of Magistrate Ernest E. Morris Jr. Subsequently, the period of public comment on the reappointment was affirmed by the judges of the Superior Court and confirmed by and order dated Oct. 17, 2023, signed by the Honorable Debra S. Watlington.
Magistrate Judge Ernest E. Morris Jr. is a native son of the territory, specifically the island of St. Croix. As valedictorian of the 1996 graduating class of St. Joseph High School, he went on to earn two Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and Spanish from Yale University. In 2005, he earned his Juris Doctor from the Howard University School of Law.
Upon completion of law school, Magistrate Morris returned home to the Virgin Islands where he worked as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Edgar D. Ross and the Honorable Julio A. Brady before serving as appellate law clerk to Associate Justice of the Virgin Islands Supreme Court the Honorable Maria M. Cabret.
A consummate public servant, Magistrate Morris has worked as a territorial public defender, assistant legal counsel of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands, and chief legal counsel of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands.
His work in the private sector included serving as Corporate Counsel for Viya and opening his own law practice, the Morris Legal Group. Effective Nov. 10,
2019, he returned to public service upon his first appointment to a 4-year term as magistrate judge of the Superior Court in the District of St. Croix. His new term of office will commence on Nov. 11.
Presiding Judge Debra S. Watlington said, “All of us at the Superior Court look forward to his continued hard work and dedication as he undertakes the enormous responsibility of administering justice on behalf of the people of the Virgin Islands.”
For more information, contact:
Regina Petersen, Administrator of Courts
Judicial Branch of the Virgin Islands
P.O. Box 590
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 00804
Tel: 774‐2237; Fax: 774‐2258; TTY: 693-4118
