Dawn Smith is a British Virgin Islander lawyer who serves as the Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands since 2020.

Dawn Smith
27th Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands
Assumed office
1 October 2020
Appointed byAugustus Jaspert
MonarchsElizabeth II
Charles III
PremierAndrew Fahie
Natalio Wheatley
Preceded byBaba Aziz
Personal details
BornRoad Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands
EducationUniversity of the West Indies (LEC, LLB)
Middlebury College (BLA)

Early life and education

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Smith was born at Peebles Hospital in Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.[1] She holds a Legal Education Certificate from Norman Manley Law School in Kingston, Jamaica, a Bachelor of Laws, Upper Second Class Honours from the University of the West Indies, Barbados; and Bachelor of Liberal Arts, cum laude with Highest Honours in Sociology-Anthropology from Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vermont, USA.[2]

Career

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Smith worked as an attorney at O'Neal Webster O'Neal Myers Fletcher & Gordon from 1997 to 2001. From 2002 to 2006 and again from 2009 to 2012, she was an attorney at Conyers Dill & Pearman, from 2006 to 2009 she served as director of the London office. From 2013 to 2020, she was general counsel at the Financial Services Commission. From 2017 to 2019, she served as acting permanent secretary of the premier's office, where she supervised and coordinated the work of departments under the premier's portfolio; preparing and managing the ministry's annual budget; developing and implementing strategic plans and serving as an ex-officio member on statutory boards and organisations such as the BVI Tourist Board and BVI Finance.[2]

Attorney General

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In May 2020, Smith was selected as attorney general,[3] with the premier naming a Virgin Islander.[4] On 18 September 2020, Smith was appointed by Augustus Jaspert as Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands, effective 1 October 2020.[2] She was sworn in on 1 October 2020.[5][6] She is the seventh woman to be appointed as attorney general.[7]

References

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  1. ^ Smith, Dawn (1 October 2020). STATEMENT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL HONOURABLE DAWN J. SMITH AT THE FIFTEENTH SITTING of the SECOND SESSION of the FOURTH HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY (Speech). House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Dawn J. Smith Appointed Attorney General" (Press release). Premier's Office Attorney General’s Chambers. 2020-09-18.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ Kampa, Dana (2020-05-28). "Dawn Smith named new attorney general - The BVI Beacon". Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  4. ^ "Virgin Islanders to serve as Director of Public Prosecutions, Attorney General - The BVI Beacon". 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  5. ^ "Dawn J. Smith Sworn In As Attorney General" (Press release). Office of the Governor Attorney General’s Chambers. 2020-10-01.
  6. ^ "Dawn J. Smith appointed VI Attorney General". www.virginislandsnewsonline.com. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  7. ^ "BVI appoints new Attorney General". Loop News. 2020-09-20. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
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Legal offices
Preceded by
Baba Aziz
Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands
2020–present
Incumbent