Dog Law: Vicious Dogs; Your Rights And Responsibilities

The American Samoa Bar Association, in conjunction with the American Samoa Humane Society, hosted a panel discussion entitled “Dog Law: Vicious Dogs, Your Rights and Responsibilities.”  This panel presented on the local laws relating to vicious dogs, including the criminal laws, civil liability and rights, and ownership issues.  The event was open to the public.

For more information, please follow the link here – Vicious Dogs

Court Memo: Natural Disasters

The Chief Justice has released a memo to all bar members regarding the court schedule and natural disasters. Bar members are encouraged to read the memo to understand how to react to the threat of natural disasters when a case is scheduled.

The memo can be found here (pdf 112kB).

New Guardianship Forms

Judge Ward has asked for comments from the bar concerning new guardianship forms the court plans to use.

You can download the draft forms and letter here (.pdf 3.3mb).

Comments may be made by letter directly to Judge Ward, or may be emailed to the President at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Court Memo: Appellate Cases

The Chief Justice has released a new memo regarding the pending appellate cases. With the announcement that Judge Ward and Judge Patea have been made Associate Justices, the Chief Justice has announced that future appellate panels will be made up entirely of on-island justices. The three justices that were not part of the original decision will act as appellate judges.

Members that have comments regarding this should email the President at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

The memo can be read here. (.pdf 10kb)