Trump Nominates Judge Robert Molloy As District Court Judge, Replacing Curtis Gomez

President Donald Trump has nominated Judge Robert Molloy to serve as District Court Judge of the Virgin Islands, according to a White House release issued late Wednesday. Judge Molloy currently serves at the VI Superior Court on St. Croix.

The news pleased the VI Bar Association, whose president extolled Judge Molloy as well qualified for the position.

“Judge Molloy has done an excellent job moving his calendar in the Superior Court and most recently administered the newly created Complex Litigation Division,” said VI Bar Association President Attorney Chivonne Thomas. “The VI Bar Association celebrates the rise of our well qualified attorneys to the bench. There is no greater privilege that I have as Bar president than to assure a qualified judiciary for the people of the Virgin Islands.”

The nomination comes as current District Court Judge Curtiz Gomez has been weighing a decision that will have immense repercussions for the Virgin Islands. The District Court in November 2018 blocked the local government from collecting excise taxes — an estimated $40 million annually — putting a dent in the Virgin Islands government’s coffers, even as its financial commitments, including $45 million in raises to employees, have risen. 

Judge Gomez joined the District Court in 2005 after a nomination from President George W. Bush. His term expired in 2015, but he continues to serve as federal judge on the district court pending his successor’s confirmation. Prior to joining the court, Judge Gomez worked as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of the Virgin Islands.

Prior to taking the bench in 2013, Judge Molloy served as an assistant attorney general of Labor in the Virgin Islands Office of Collective Bargaining. He served as a law clerk to Judge Raymond L. Finch of the U.S. District Court of the Virgin Islands and earned a B.S. from Hampton University, his J.D. from American University Washington College of Law, and his M.B.A. from American University Kogod School of Business.

According to Ms. Thomas, when a nomination is being considered, several factors are examined, most important of which is experience. “Recommendations can come from several sources including members of Congress, sitting judges and even self-nomination,” she explained.